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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27529753">The Fires in the Forest</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyPeck/pseuds/LadyPeck'>LadyPeck</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sebenn [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Star Trek: Discovery</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, Series</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-04-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 02:53:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>46,243</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27529753</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyPeck/pseuds/LadyPeck</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Six years have passed since Michael was rescued from Sebenn. When news that Sarek has been taken captive on that same planet, during peace talks to end the Sebennian civil war, Michael is summoned by Amanda to help in the efforts to locate him. Not only must she worry about the safety of her foster father, she must also deal with the resurfacing of memories involving her time on the planet, her relationship with Spock, and the possibility that Sarek may be lost to the family forever, even if he's found on the planet.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Amanda Grayson/Sarek, Michael Burnham/Spock</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sebenn [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2012179</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Matriarchy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Chapters will be posted weekly.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em> There he is. Spock. He stands with his back straight, hands clasped behind him as is usual. He’s not in uniform, which is quite unusual. He’s dressed in a long crimson tunic over black leggings.  Behind him is a village built into trees so massive their branches block out the sun. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Lights are strung among those massive branches, glowing with golden light. Up and up into the trees the village goes, with people going about their lives, laughing, joking, crying, fighting, loving, and everything else that comes with a planet-bound life. They all have roughly the same golden tone of skin, but with colorful hair and matching spots. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Spock smiles at her without any qualms about expressing his feelings. The desire to touch him, kiss him, take him between her thighs, is powerful. She moans at the overwhelming need he inspires within her. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He holds up a hand, two fingers extended, a traditional greeting of a husband to his spouse. “Attend, Wife.” </em>
</p><p><em> With joy so intense, so deep that it makes her chest ache, Michael hurries to Spock, touching her fingers to his. </em> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p> </p><p>Michael’s eyes snap open. The room is filled with the comforting hum of the <em>USS Equinox’s</em> engines. Even without looking at the old-fashioned alarm clock that had belonged to her father, the only personal possession of his she still has, she knows the time will read 0430, give or take a few minutes. She’s only five minutes over when she looks at the hands. </p><p>It’s the same every morning following one of these strange dreams. Sleep won’t return to her, so she gets up, goes to the gymnasium for her morning workout, and then returns to her quarters to shower and eat breakfast. She’s about to program the sonic shower when she feels a deep pain that aches in her head. She sees herself in a wooden shower stall with Spock. They lather a cloth with soap as they stand under the steaming water coming from above.  She doesn’t want to wash away his scent.</p><p>
  <em> “The others would not appreciate my smell on your body as you do,” he says, smiling at her. She wants him so desperately she aches for him. He doesn’t deny her. </em>
</p><p>Michael opens her eyes. What were all these strange images? None of this happened. Ever. Yet they felt like memories that were unusually vivid.</p><p>She changes her mind on the type of shower she wants. “Water shower. Preset one.”</p><p>Hot water rained down on her with heavy pressure, pounding the tension out of her muscles by sheer force. She relished the heat, moved under the spray to allow it to massage from her left shoulder, across the back of her neck, to her right shoulder, and then down her back. As the water worked its magic, her mind went to Spock. They made peace five years ago, had a relaxed friendship, but it wasn’t enough. She wanted more. If only he felt the same way. </p><p>“Commander Burnham, report to my office as soon as possible, please.”</p><p>Captain Saru. After managing to send the sphere data to the future, they’d found a way to come home. When Saru was promoted to captain, he’d been given the <em>Equinox</em>, and asked for her to be his first officer. </p><p>“On my way,” she said, finishing her breakfast and putting the dishes in the recycler before heading out to start her day a full hour early.</p><p>“Captain?”</p><p>Saru sat behind his desk, but he wasn’t alone in his ready room. An elderly man in an admiral’s uniform sat across from him. She took a seat when he motioned for her to join in.</p><p>“This is Admiral Dresden. Admiral, my first officer, Commander Michael Burnham.”</p><p>“It is an honor to meet you, Commander Burnham.”</p><p>“Thank you, Sir.”</p><p>“I’ll get right to the point since this is an urgent matter,” said Dresden. “Your foster father, Sarek of Vulcan, has been kidnapped.”</p><p>Michael’s eyes shot to Saru, who nodded, and then back to the admiral as a sinking feeling took root in the pit of her stomach. “What happened?”</p><p>“He was assigned to a planet called Sebenn to oversee talks that would end a civil war on the planet. While there, a group of extremists took him hostage.”</p><p>“I’m a little familiar with Sebenn, Sir. My shuttle crash landed there six years ago while on my way to shore leave.”</p><p>Dresden nodded. “Yes, I’m familiar with the incident. You were in a coma?”</p><p>“So were the crew mates that went with me. We’re lucky to have survived the crash.”</p><p>“Commander,” Saru said, “we have received some interesting intel that you and your crew mates were actually awake that entire time. You even participated in events when the civil war erupted. It’s possible these memories are vital to discovering who has Ambassador Sarek, and how we can safely recover him.”</p><p>Saru may as well have kicked her in the stomach. It suddenly began to make sense. The dreams she was experiencing...they weren’t dreams, they were memories. </p><p>“If you have something pertinent to say, Commander, then please speak,” Dresden said.</p><p>“I keep having these visions that feel like memories. I thought they were dreams until...”</p><p>Dresden shared a look with Saru before speaking.</p><p>“Ensign Kerry has also reported such instances,” Saru said. “Dr. Culber’s tests reveal artificially repressed memories that appear to have been done through a Vulcan mind meld.”</p><p>“Are you accusing Spock of something?” Michael asked.</p><p>“Or, perhaps, Lieutenant Sinat,” Saru said.</p><p>“Wasn’t he transferred to the <em> Union </em>?” Dresden asked.</p><p>“Last year, yes,” said Saru. “After Kerry’s experiences I had a hunch and asked both him and Ensign Kak, who now serves aboard the <em> Constitution </em>. She has reported no memory disturbances. Lieutenant Baratta, now serving on Deep Space Three, has reported no memory issues related to Sebenn.”</p><p>“How much do you wanna bet we’d find them if we looked?” Michael asked.</p><p>“So far only you and Kerry have reported such disturbances,” said Dresden. “I want you to report to the <em> Enterprise </em>. I’ve dispatched it to enter talks with the Sebennians for Ambassador Sarek’s safe return.”</p><p>“What about Kerry? If his memories were tampered with, he deserves to know why.”</p><p>Dresden nodded. “He will, Commander Burnham, as soon as you find out the truth. If he wants to have his memories recovered, I see no reason not to have whatever was done to him reversed. But first the mission is to return to Sebenn and find the ambassador.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>…</b>
</p><p> </p><p>“An old Class 1 shuttle? Am I being punished for something?”</p><p>Michael was only half joking. The shuttle was ancient, tiny, and slow, capable only of warp two. Why they were still in service mystified her. The class three at least had some minimal weapons and was much more spacious.</p><p>Captain Saru clucked his tongue. “Of course not. Starfleet is doing a recall of this class. Once you’ve rendezvoused with the <em> Enterprise </em> you are to set the auto controls to have it pilot to Starbase 14 where it will be recycled. The current plan is for <em> Enterprise </em> to return you to us directly after the mission. No more claustrophobic shuttles.”</p><p>“I want to come with you.”</p><p>Kerry, promoted to Ensign from Yeoman, entered the shuttle bay with a bag packed. The look of determination on his face told Michael he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Not easily.</p><p>“I’m sorry, Ensign, but your duties are aboard the <em> Equinox </em>. You are not needed on the mission—”</p><p>He shot Saru a cold look of determination. “With all due respect, Captain, I may not be needed, but I have to go. I lost something on Sebenn. Something was taken from me. A man I loved.”</p><p>“The Sebennians have made it perfectly clear that off-worlders are not allowed to remain on the planet. They are closed from outsiders,” Saru said. “I am not unsympathetic to your situation, but we are on the verge of a diplomatic disaster. I cannot allow you to jeopardize this mission for your personal feelings.”</p><p>“Then I resign my commission. I’ll return to Sebenn as a civilian and ask them to allow me to come down. His name was Maal. I must find him. He thinks…he thinks I abandoned him.”</p><p>“Resign your commission?” Saru looked at Kerry, aghast.</p><p>“Kerry, think this through,” Michael said, knowing the last thing they needed on Sebenn was a loose cannon. “I know you want to regain your memories in full. So do I. But this isn’t just about you, or me. It’s about a civilization trying to resolve a long history of sexism and oppression. It’s about one of our own in imminent danger.”</p><p>“Your foster father,” he said, his voice tight. “You’re fine with leaving me here as long as you get to go and actually do something for your family. I’m a lowly Ensign and Maal’s a low-level computer tech, we don’t matter, huh?”</p><p>Saru clucked his tongue, “Oh, really. You know that isn’t true.”</p><p>“I’ll find Maal for you,” Michael promised. “I’ll find out what happened to him and help you communicate with him if he’s survived these past six years. I’ll make sure you get to speak with him face to face, so that you can have your memory wipe undone as much as possible. Please, Jackson. Please let me try to resolve this situation. When it’s over I’ll even help Maal apply for asylum with the Federation aboard the <em> Equinox </em> so he can be here with you.”</p><p>Kerry heaved a sigh, still uncertain. Michael understood his desires to go, to find the man he loved. She couldn’t imagine having to sit on the sidelines in such a situation and just wait.</p><p>“You give me your word?”</p><p>“I will move heaven itself to keep my word,” Michael said. “You know me, Kerry. I don’t make promises lightly, but I promise I will find out what happened to your love, and I’ll do everything in my power to find some way to reunite you.”</p><p>He let his hands drop to his side and nodded his agreement. “All right. I’ll trust you to do this. But remember one thing-if I don’t hear back in a reasonable amount of time, I will find a way to Sebenn on my own. I’ll find Maal.”</p><p>“That’s fair. I’ll keep in touch. I’ll send you regular updates on how things are going. Besides,” she said, looking at the tiny shuttle she was to use to rendezvous with <em> Enterprise </em>, “I’m not sure we could both fit in there with these bags.”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p><p>Spock was certain that his captain thought he was tamping down on his emotions regarding the news that his father had been kidnapped, and was being used as a bargaining chip in the Sebennian civil war. The truth was, he genuinely didn’t give a damn.</p><p><em> Sarek… </em> </p><p>Spock couldn’t even think the name, couldn’t see his father’s face in his mind, without being flooded with bitterness and hatred. The man had robbed him of a chance at happiness with the love of his life. How could that be forgiven?</p><p>“I know you’re worried,” Pike said.</p><p>He was oblivious to the more personal things that had happened between him and Michael on Sebenn. Una, the first officer, however, was fully aware, having been spared the memory purge. She looked at Spock with knowing as Captain Pike continued. “We’ll do everything we can to ensure his safe return.”</p><p>“I am not worried,” Spock said. “Live or die, it is of no consequence to me.”</p><p>“I know that’s gotta be bullshit,” Pike said. “This is your father. You don’t have to play the hardass Vulcan with me.”</p><p>“You have been more of a father to me in my time aboard the <em> Enterprise </em> than he was in my entire life. No bullshit.”</p><p>Spock turned back to his PADD, staring at the data scrolling past without reading it. He could see, peripherally, that Pike exchanged a look with Una, who shook her head, encouraging Pike not to argue, or question it. Thankfully, the captain dropped the subject of his father for one that made his stomach flip, but not in a bad way.</p><p>“Well, you’ll still be united with family. Your mother will beam aboard at Starbase 12. Your sister’s shuttle just arrived.”</p><p>“Michael is here? Why was I not told of this?”</p><p>“I wanted a pleasant surprise for you.”</p><p>“You have succeeded, Sir.”</p><p>“Good.”</p><p>Pike led them into shuttle bay one. An old Class 1 shuttle departed the bay just as they entered. Michael stood stiffly a few feet from the door.</p><p>“A Class 1, Burnham? What did you do to upset Captain Saru that he’d punish you this hard?”</p><p>“You know me, sir. I’m prone to kicking ass with a flagrant disregard for protocol and regulation.”</p><p>Michael’s smile was genuine, but Spock could see how stiff her shoulders were.</p><p>Spock could feel himself begin to calm from the excitement of seeing her face to face, but he could not completely shut down all feelings. He never could when it came to Michael, or his father for that matter. Both inspired passions that drove him to the brink of madness. The difference was that Michael awakened feelings of respect, love, comfort, lust. His father, resentment, loathing, hostility. Hatred.</p><p><em> I love you more than I love my next heartbeat </em>.</p><p>As soon as the thought flitted through his mind Michael's breath caught. He felt her eyes lock onto him.</p><p>
  <em> I love you more than I love my next breath. </em>
</p><p>His pulse quickened again. They shouldn’t be able to sense each other’s thoughts. Yet it was happening. He found himself looking at places on her face but not making eye contact. If he did, he was afraid she’d see the myriad emotions that warred within. He felt everything for her, all at once, and it took everything he had to keep from wrapping his arms around her. </p><p>They’d made peace during their battle against the AI. She’d returned to their time after taking the sphere data into the future, but their careers had kept them from sharing more than the occasional VidChat. He wouldn't indulge in those too often either. Looking into her eyes made him want to bring up the past that hung on the peripheral of their conversations. </p><p>“Considering the personal nature of our affiliation with Ambassador Sarek, perhaps it would be best if we let others handle this mission,” suggested Spock, as they followed the captain into the corridor. He stopped at the turbolift. </p><p>“Normally I’d agree, but Admiral Dresden was clear. It’s to be you two, and Number One,” said Pike, before stepping into the lift and heading off to start his day.</p><p>“Well. I have crew reviews to look over,” Una said, her eyes darting between Spock and Michael. “Spock, report to my office after you’ve helped Michael settle in.”</p><p>He and Michael walked in companionable silence through the corridors until they reached the guest quarters. Crewmen gave Michael curious looks, wondering who she was. Starfleet had done a superb job hiding <em> Discovery’s </em> mission. There’d been no glory for the crew, but Spock knew that glory had never been the motivation for their actions.</p><p>“Your quarters are just down the hall,” she said.</p><p>“Affirmative. You have familiarized yourself with the ship’s layout?”</p><p>“I’ve studied every class of ship in service, including constitution class. I also remember coming here after Sebenn. You were…”</p><p>“Cruel,” he said. “I have apologized for—”</p><p>“I don’t want to revisit old hurts, Spock. I just need to tell you something. It’s important.”</p><p>“Computer assign these quarters to Commander Michael Burnham. Authorization code Spock Beta 772.”</p><p>“Quarters assigned.”</p><p>Michael led the way into the standard room that was boring, generic, and Spock followed her in. As soon as the doors closed, she turned to him and spoke.</p><p>“I love you more than I love my next breath.”</p><p>“Michael…”</p><p>“I  could hear when you thought our vows from years ago. How?  Our bond has been broken. Why? Why did you break it? And how did I feel your thought? Is it residual? Or are you subconsciously reaching for me?”</p><p>“Michael, please, do not revisit this part of our past. Not when we have made peace with it.”</p><p>“I’ve been having visions, Spock. You and I, on Sebenn, living together as husband and wife. Every memory is filled passion. Lust. Love. They’re good memories. I recover more every day.”</p><p>“Absurd. You were in a coma—”</p><p>He knew what she was about to do but was powerless to stop her from pressing her mouth to his in a kiss that was decidedly not platonic. Damn if he didn’t give in at once and plunge his tongue into her mouth with a deep, loud moan born of six years of repressed longing. His hands grasped at her, desperate to feel the warmth of her smooth skin. He hardened at once, and pressed himself against Michael, reveling in her soft warmth as she opened her thighs to him.</p><p>Their tongues rubbed frantically together. It seemed the entire room was filled with the scent of her arousal. He ripped at her trousers, desperate to feel her wetness as he pressed her against the couch and ground his hips against her. Her hands were under his tunic, scratching at his back. He had to free himself. He had to be inside her, <em> now </em>.</p><p>“Spock!” she gasped, clutching him like he was the only thing real in her world in that moment.</p><p>How many times had she called his name as he’d driven into her body on Sebenn, and before? Too many to count, and he hadn’t thought he’d ever hear his name on her lips in that way ever again. Smoky with lust. Choked with need.</p><p>With Herculean effort Spock pulled away from her, staggered back, a sound like rage escaping him as he forced himself to overcome his desires. He could scarcely catch his next breath. Michael's uniform hung in tatters. He could see her breasts. See her womanhood glistening between her thighs. She was breathless when she spoke.</p><p>“We were together again, Spock. Yet you, or Sinat, or Sarek, decided to wipe my memory of it.”</p><p>“Please…”</p><p>“But the wipe is failing,” Michael pressed. “I remember us. Kerry remembers Maal. What happened between us on Sebenn? Husband, please.”</p><p>“I will not discuss Sebenn. I have a duty to uphold. And I am not your husband.”</p><p>“Look what just happened between us. How quickly it escalated. You will always be my husband. I will always be your wife!”</p><p>Goddamn he loved her. Admired her. She wasn’t going to quit. He knew better than that. Yet he had to hold out as long as possible. He’d made a promise to the man who’d fathered him for her benefit.</p><p>“It was you; I know it. Nobody else could've gotten close enough to do it. You wiped my memories. Why? What could’ve happened to make you violate my mind in such a way? To destroy our marriage?”</p><p>“It was necessary.”</p><p>“You had no right!”</p><p>She was more hurt than angry when she pulled off her ruined uniform and stood naked before him. Perhaps she could turn toward that anger and give him an excuse to flee.</p><p>“You want me to be angry, so you’ll have an excuse for distance, but I won’t allow it. Not again. I love you, Spock. I’m with you. For you. I’m your greatest ally.”</p><p>He choked down a sob, remembering when and why she’d spoken those words to him after his fight with Sarek. How many times had he indulged this very fantasy, where she remembered and returned to him? Now it was happening, but he would have to fight it with everything in him. For some unfathomable reason she loved Sarek. It would devastate her to know she’d lose him forever if they reunited.</p><p>“I must go.”</p><p>“I won’t let you avoid this forever.”</p><p>He turned from her, but one word gave him pause.</p><p>“Husband.”</p><p>He had to find Una. He had to tell her what was happening and hope she could tell him what to do. But first he had to regain control of his body.</p><p>“Computer, site to site transport to my quarters.”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p><p>As a son of Vulcan, Sarek loved the hot, arid landscape he’d known all his life. At times he missed it.</p><p>Yet Sebenn was not without considerable beauty. For as far as the eye could see, from his high perch, the ground was choked with ancient trees that towered over the land made stable by an extensive root system. Sebennians lived in complete harmony with nature. An entire city had been built around the trees rather than cutting them down to make room for artificial constructs. Materials were natural, mostly wood, but also glass, stone, and metal.</p><p>Currently, the exposed grounds were covered in a thick blanket of pristine snow. These clearings acted as parks for access to direct sunlight. The sound of children running in delight through the snow reached his ears. Light and snow, however, didn’t penetrate much through the canopy of ancient branches that made up the planet-wide forest that was Sebenn.</p><p>Sarek watched people traverse the many bridges that acted as streets for the tree cities. Small animals and birds moved about with them, completely unafraid of the people they shared the trees with. Often, children would throw seeds out and laugh with glee as the birds and animals scurried to fill their bellies with the treats.</p><p>There were cars, hanging from cables, that offered public transportation for longer trips around the city. Ground and air vehicles also offered such services.</p><p>Sarek found their evolution fascinating. No history of pollution existed. While they’d developed impressive weapons, as well as space travel, they were a civilization with the most advanced healing tech the Federation had ever seen. They could produce means of clean energy that left absolutely zero impact on nature. Even the Federation still had to mine dilithium and other natural resources to power starships. Hence Starfleet’s decision to try to broker peace between the men and women of this world. If they could transcend their anti-male bias, they could be welcomed into the Federation. In turn the Federation would benefit from what they had to offer.</p><p>In the distance stood the sprawling royal palace. With the exception of the power manufacturing stations, it was the only structure he’d ever seen on Sebenn that was completely independent of the trees. Made almost entirely of steel and stone, as well as many glass windows, it was the only place with an exterior not constructed with wood. The now cloudless sky above allowed the sun to blaze across the landscape, and the palace was like a shining star that had settled to the ground.</p><p>Spock and Michael had spent more than a month on this world six years ago. He had no difficulty imagining them having ‘gone native’ as it were. They’d worn Sebennian clothes and lived peacefully among the group that called itself Equilibrium. They’d been happy…until he gave into his foolish pride and destroyed their marriage. He’d lost his son for it. At first, he was certain Spock would see the wisdom in his outlook and would come around. He would realize that by putting his pseido-incestuous relationship with Michael behind them, he would spare the family name shame that would last generations after his own passing.</p><p>But Spock not only didn’t come to agree with his father, he’d come to harbor resentment toward his mother. Spock viewed him as a monster she’d chosen over him, and as Amanda began to pull away from him, Sarek came to realize his actions had indeed been those of a villain rather than a father. How, he often asked himself, would he view his own father had he forced him to abandon the woman he loved? The love of his life?</p><p>Sarek swallowed. His stomach was tight with shame and remorse. He hadn’t forced his son and his ward apart because of worry about their reputation. Not solely because of it. He’d done it out of pride, and a need to bend Spock to his will, as Amanda often pointed out as being the case..</p><p>“Ambassador.”</p><p>Sarek pulled himself from his musings and turned to the young security officer who stood on the footbridge that led to his private rooms. Her name was Gille. Short and stout, with moss green hair, and matching spotting. The spots were shaped like apple seeds. They lined the hairline and sides of the head before merging at the base of the throat to form a single line that moved down the center of the chest all the way to the groin.</p><p>“Gille, good morning.”</p><p>“Morning, Sir. Shall I escort you to the Diplomatic Prime offices?”</p><p>“Yes, thank you.”</p><p>He moved along the ledge, unconcerned with locking his quarters. Theft was rare among the Sebennians. They were a naturally honest race, if not backward in their way of thinking regarding gender equality. </p><p>Once on the footbridge, they strolled through the trees. Lights had been strung among the branches to illuminate the perpetual darkness of the forested landscape. They glittered, making him think of the stars.</p><p>“Have you eaten, Sir?”</p><p>“I have not.”</p><p>“Breakfast will be served at the palace.”</p><p>Sarek, as much as was possible for him, liked Gille. She wasn’t much for displaying emotion. She kept a head as cool as the frost covered dagger on her belt, though she carried a phase pistol as well, that bounced against her thick, muscular thigh. She also wasn’t prone to small talk.</p><p>An air shuttle hovered in the designated sky lot. He stepped in, followed by Gille, who sealed the door.</p><p>“Computer, plot a course for the Royal Palace, priority speed. Engage.”</p><p>The shuttle smoothly lifted higher into the sky, turned toward the palace, and began to accelerate. Sarek had just taken out his PADD, to review his schedule, when the shuttle lurched beneath them. The seating restraint field kicked in to hold him in place.</p><p>“Report.”</p><p>“We’re caught in a tractor beam,” Gille explained. “I’m requesting backup.”</p><p>Frigid air flooded the cabin as the roof was ripped away with an unnerving scream of grinding metal. The shuttle went completely dark as systems went offline, before another field gripped both him and Gille and lifted them into the belly of the shuttle above them while their dead shuttle fell to the ground. As soon as they were aboard, they were surrounded by armed women. One of them leveled a pistol at Sarek.</p><p>“We’ve got the ambassador, go,” she ordered. The woman stared at him with naked contempt. “This is a projectile weapon. It can’t be disabled by the security grid. While primitive, it is quite deadly.”</p><p>“You have our full cooperation,” Sarek said.</p><p>“We don’t need this traitor,” the woman said, nodding at Gille.</p><p>Sarek held up a hand. “She is only doing her duty. She has shown me no favor. Please do not harm her.”</p><p>The woman studied Gille, who met her gaze with an unflinching stare.</p><p>“We’ll let the Prime decide her fate. Follow me.”</p><p>“The Prime of what?” Sarek asked, following along as ordered. The woman looked back at him with a sneer.</p><p>“The Matriarchy.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. More Questions Than Answers</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Michael wants answers that no one is willing to give. Amanda has unexpected news for Spock. Sarek meets his captor and faces a most unpleasant death.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p>Michael donned her new uniform, her other one having been destroyed by Spock in the moment of insanity they’d shared.</p><p>This uniform was in the form of a very short dress many officers, male and female alike, were wearing. Hers was gold with the black collar, and Michael wondered how it had gotten approved for service. Not that she was actually required to wear it. She could’ve settled on the trousers, as Una had after turning her nose up in offense at the dress, but she decided she found it rather appealing.</p><p>She thought perhaps Spock would, too.</p><p>After affixing her delta shield she left her quarters. She didn’t have any official duties aboard the Enterprise. She was more of a passenger, but she hoped she could make herself useful. She pondered what she could be allowed to do as she headed toward the Captain’s Mess for the breakfast she’d been invited to.</p><p>“Morning, Commander Burnham,” Captain Pike said, motioning to a seat to welcome her. “You like the new uniform, I see.”</p><p>“I do.”</p><p>“Well, I suppose if it empowers <em> you </em>…” Una said, one eyebrow cocked as she stirred cream into her coffee.</p><p>“Number One is offended by the sheer…abbreviation…of the uniforms,” Pike said, not even trying to hide his amusement.</p><p>“They barely qualify as a tunic, and they objectify the person wearing it,” Una said. “Considering it’s been targeted toward the female crew, I’m guessing it was a man who designed it.”</p><p>“The designer is a woman, I believe,” Michael pointed out, spreading her napkin in her lap. Una looked appalled at this revelation.</p><p>“It’s not mandatory to wear,” Pike pointed out. </p><p>“Understood, Sir,” Una said stiffly, which garnered another grin from Pike.</p><p>“Where is Spock?” Michael asked. “I thought he’d join us.”</p><p>“Said he’s busy with crew reviews for sciences. He’s recently been promoted to head of that department. I think he wants to make a good impression,” Pike said. “Either that, or he’s avoiding you. You two aren’t fussing again, are you?”</p><p>Michael shook her head and then shared a glance with Una, who gazed back at her with sympathy in her eyes.</p><p>“What?” Pike questioned.</p><p>Michael filled him in on Dresden’s revelation and he sighed. “So you know? All that subterfuge was for nothing?”</p><p>“Looks like,” Michael said. “But there’s more. I trust you’ll be discreet.”</p><p>“Of course.”</p><p>“Spock and I were married in secret, years ago, before Sebenn. We dropped our relationship to pursue our careers.”</p><p>Pike coughed around the coffee that got stuck in his throat upon hearing ‘married.’ He looked to Una, who nodded.</p><p>“I thought he was your brother.”</p><p>“Most people do,” Michael said, nodding. “We let them. Rather, I let them. I wanted to keep it secret. I was afraid our parents wouldn’t understand. Turns out I was right, I think. My memories haven’t fully returned. All I know is that there was a terrible fight between Sarek and Spock and I think it was over me.”</p><p>“I’m not divulging anything of what happened on Sebenn, Michael,” Una preempted. “I don’t fully understand it, but Spock had his reasons for the memory wipe. If you get them back on your own that’s one thing, but I can’t betray his confidence.”</p><p>Michael wanted to growl in frustration, or slam her fist on the table at yet another roadblock to finding out what had happened on Sebenn. Spock wouldn’t confide in her. Now Una. Amanda was her last hope. What if she refused, as well? What if she didn’t get all of her memories back? Would she be doomed to live with half truths and wild speculation for the rest of her life?</p><p>“I understand that. It’s just frustrating to have him reverting to old habits of avoiding and ignoring me after we made peace.”</p><p>“He’ll come around,” Pike said. “He loves you. That’s obvious. I didn’t know <em> how </em>he loved you, but that’s irrelevant. Give him time.”</p><p>“Well, as appealing as a two-day vacation sounds, I would like to find something to do aboard ship. Help out in some way.”</p><p>“Report to Spock,” Pike said. “Not because of anything personal, but you have a background in science. We could use some help in collating the sensor data of a newly discovered nebula we charted.”</p><p>Michael nodded and breakfast continued with small talk rather than anything heavier, or more personal, and she was relieved.</p><p>When she came onto the bridge, she found Spock at his station, leaning over his console, deeply engrossed in the data scrolling by on his viewer.</p><p>“You’re hovering,” he said, as the seconds dragged by.</p><p>“Captain Pike assigned me to you. He says there’s sensor data from a new nebula that needs collating.”</p><p>“Then you may report to Lieutenant Goodman in astrophysics.”</p><p>“Spock.”</p><p>He finally stood from his viewer to face her. He knew Pike was listening while pretending not to, as was Una. “You may take one of the stations on the bridge if you are so inclined.”</p><p>She nodded and sat down to get to work, receiving a command code so she could access ship data. As she was working, she became aware of Spock’s gaze on her. She turned to look at him and saw his eyes were glued on her legs, which were crossed, and quite exposed from the short length of the uniform.</p><p>“Did you see something interesting in the data, Mr. Spock?” Michael asked, pretending she didn’t know he was openly ogling her legs.</p><p>He dragged his gaze from her legs to her eyes. “No. Carry on.”</p><p>Michael barely managed to avoid laughter. “Really? You seemed quite taken with whatever you were looking at.”</p><p>She got up from her station and came to look through his viewer. Spock scooted his chair to the side so that he was behind Michael. She knew damn well he had a plum view of her ass, and the way the uniform rode high up on the backs of her thighs.</p><p>He audibly swallowed.</p><p>“I suppose you were right. It's simply full of gas,” she finally said, before returning to her station. From the corner of her eye, she could see Pike smirking. </p><p>The work really did capture Michael's attention once she settled in. By the time her duty shift was over they’d reached Starbase 12.</p><p>“You coming with me to welcome Mother aboard?”</p><p>“There is no need.”</p><p>Michael gripped Spock’s arm to keep him from exiting the turbolift.</p><p>“It’s Mother. Do you have a problem with her? Or are you attempting to be some sort of super Vulcan?”</p><p>“Neither. I simply have more responsibility now that I am head of the science department. I have a heavier workload.”</p><p>“You may have tried to sever our bond, but I know when you’re lying. I can feel it. Does this have to do with Sebenn?”</p><p>Spock gently extricated himself from Michael's grip. “Give Mother my best.”</p><p>He left her behind on the lift, his back and shoulders belying tension he tried to deny.</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p><p>A full day passed before his door chime sounded. Her self restraint was admirable. He knew who was at the door before he stood up from his desk to even open it. Yet open the door he did to his mother. She stood dressed in a simple dress popular among human women. This was one of the few times in his life he’d seen her wear something besides Vulcan attire. She gave him only a hint of a smile, making him wonder if she was upset with him. </p><p>“I was hoping you’d greet me when I beamed over from Starbase 12,” she said, remaining outside his quarters, waiting for an invitation to enter.</p><p>“I have duties to attend to.”</p><p>“May I come in?”</p><p>“It is not a good time, Mother.”</p><p>“It never is, it would seem, my son.”</p><p>Some of Spock felt a bit guilty at the pain he could see in her eyes. Pain he knew he was responsible for. But what about his pain? What about the pain he’d lived the past six years that she’d helped put into his heart? Not that she hadn’t caused him pain before, as he’d grown up in Sarek’s house, but her actions on Sebenn had been the straw to break the proverbial camel’s back.</p><p>“Very well.”</p><p>He stepped aside and watched her enter his quarters. Her eyes scanned the room before she looked at him. She didn’t mention the fact he’d removed the family holograms of the two of them. There was only one remaining—one of him and Michael after she’d returned from safely leaving the sphere data in the future. The look of unabashed joy in his eyes as he held Michael in his arms made Amanda smile.</p><p>“I’m so very glad you and Michael have made amends,” she said, turning to him.</p><p>Her words were like a knife to the gut. They caused not only pain but anger, and a sound of derision escaped him.</p><p>“Of course. We are platonic friends, maintaining the illusion of family, brother and sister, just as you and Father want.”</p><p>“That is not what I wanted for you,” Amanda said. “If you recall, I accepted your marriage to Michael. I wanted to help her plan the weddings. It was Sarek who demanded the end of your marriage and the memory wipe, not I.”</p><p>“Yet you remain by his side, as faithful as ever. No matter what that man does to your son, you support him.”</p><p>“I don’t support what—”</p><p>“I am very busy, Mother. If you will excuse me.”</p><p>“Spock, please listen—”</p><p>“I have nothing further to say to you. Good evening.”</p><p>Amanda bowed her head in acceptance of his dismissal before she stepped from the room. She turned to him and he could see her pain was more acute than he previously thought.</p><p>“I am in the process of divorcing Sarek.”</p><p>Spock felt as though the deck suddenly dropped from beneath his feet and he was in freefall.</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>“Why do you think, Spock? Yes, I remained by his side, but every day I was with him I thought of the love he and I had once shared. I thought of how you and Michael had found that same kind of love, but he’d destroyed it for his pride. Because he couldn’t admit he was wrong. Because he had to be in complete control and dominate you. Break you. I stood back and let him do that to you on everything for the entirety of your life. I should’ve defended you. I failed you in that regard. I won’t fail you now. I’ve pleaded with Sarek to try to undo the damage he’d done on Sebenn, but he has refused. So, I took action.”</p><p>“What sort of action?”</p><p>“Six months ago, I filed for divorce. I’ve been going to the priestesses to begin dissolving our marriage bond. His reaction was to return to Sebenn to help in peace talks and prepare them to apply for Federation membership. When Sarek was kidnapped I called in a favor with Admiral Dresden to assign you and Michael to find him. Michael told me of her visions of Sebenn. Her love for you runs so deep that not even a memory suppression meld could bury it forever, Spock.”</p><p>Amanda reached out and squeezed Spock’s arm. He allowed it, feeling a lump form in his throat, and tears sting at his eyes.</p><p>“I hope that being on Sebenn will somehow help the two of you resolve the mess your father has made. The mess I let happen. I know you will never be able to forgive me for going home with Sarek after what happened on Sebenn, but I do hope I can help you find peace. I hope you and Michael find your way back to one another.”</p><p>He stood in the doorway, numb with shock, as he watched his mother disappear around the curve of the corridor from his quarters. Her words resonated long after she’d left.</p><p>She was divorcing Sarek. She had pulled strings so that he and Michael could return to Sebenn and work things out as they tried to find and retrieve the man he hated most in the universe. Spock’s body moved before his brain could talk him out of it. He hurried around the corridor and saw her about to enter quarters across from Michael’s.</p><p>“Mother.”</p><p>Amanda turned to him, unshed tears in her eyes.</p><p>“Thank you.”</p><p>She bowed her head once before disappearing into her quarters.</p><p>Spock approached Michael’s quarters and rang the chime. The doors slid open and he entered to find her tapping away on a PADD.</p><p>“This is a surprise,” Michael said.</p><p>“You cannot fathom how much of a surprise I have for you, Michael. Let us talk about what happened on Sebenn six years ago.”</p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p><p>After one night spent on a cold stone bench, in a drafty cell, Sarek was physically shivering. He was native to a hot and arid world. Sebenn was in the latter days of winter, and still bitterly cold. It would not surprise him to learn the temperature hovered around 0°C. He used every technique he knew to control his body, but there was only so much that meditation could do under the circumstances.</p><p>As dawn finally brightened the sky his cell was opened and Gille was thrown, rather harshly, in with him. Sarek moved quickly to catch her before she could hit the floor. She was covered in bleeding bruises.</p><p>“She fought well,” his captor said. “Well enough that Prime is willing to spare her life. For now. You’ll be summoned soon, so be ready.”</p><p>“May I please have a blanket for Gille? She is injured and being exposed to the stone could be life-threatening.”</p><p>The guard nodded to a woman somewhere off to the side. A few moments later a thick blanket that looked made of something similar to wool was thrown in, smacking Sarek in the face.</p><p>“If you have any sense, male, you’ll use that blanket for yourself.”</p><p>She strode away, and Sarek hurried over to Gille, putting the blanket onto the second stone bench. As soon as he helped her lie down he wrapped her up, and used his own cloak as a pillow.</p><p>“I need to assess your injuries,” he said, reaching for her face.</p><p>“What are you doing?” Gille asked. Her voice was course from screaming.</p><p>“I need to feel out your injuries so I can know best how to assist you. I will not pry into private thoughts.”</p><p>She nodded and allowed Sarek to initiate a light meld. Keeping his word, he felt out her injuries as though they’d been done to his own body.</p><p>“I can help you sleep,” he said.</p><p>“Please.”</p><p>He dove back into her mind and used a powerful suggestion that allowed her brain to shut down on a deep level close to a coma. Her breathing slowed, and she was finally able to rest without dreams or pain.</p><p>Tired from the melding, and a sleepless night in the cold, Sarek got to his feet and forced himself to pace, to keep moving, and keep his body heat up. When two new armed guards came to take him from the cell, he spared Gille one last look. She was resting peacefully and, should he not return, would wake up in a few hours on her own.</p><p>Sarek was forced to navigate the halls with his head covered by a thick hood that allowed for no light to escape. Or so they believed. Part of being a touch telepath meant he could get a hazy view through the eyes of anyone touching him. At one point he could see them leading him toward steps, but they did not warn him. He deliberately walked into them, tripping, earning petty laughter from the women leading him.</p><p>“Two steps, fool,” one of the women said.</p><p>It wasn’t difficult to memorize the route from the cell to the room his captor wished to meet him in, which was long and narrow, with a massive wooden table taking up the center of the space. Wooden chairs lined both sides, plus one at each end, seated sixteen people in all. Even if he couldn’t see the room, he could smell the feast that had been laid out.</p><p>The only chair occupied was at the end of the table where the food had been set out. Sarek was led to a chair to the woman’s right and shoved into it before the hood was yanked from his head. His eyes squinted as he adjusted to the light that flooded the room from the windows and the glass ceiling above.</p><p>The woman had flaming orange hair that was done in a short, spiky cut, with matching spotting, but there was quite a bit of gray streaked through it. She was tall, lanky, with thin limbs and delicate-looking fingers tipped with long, sharp nails painted black. Sarek held back as best he could but he couldn’t quite stop the rumbling in his belly at the smell of the food. His captor ignored it.</p><p>“Sarek of Vulcan. You have been on Sebenn quite a while.”</p><p>“Six months. Talks have been going quite well.”</p><p>She smirked at him as she brought a forkful of some kind of root vegetable to her lips. It didn’t take long for Sarek to recognize it from Vulcan. His mouth watered at the thought of eating it and he swallowed. His captor pushed a pitcher of water his way. Sarek immediately drank three glasses before his thirst was quenched.</p><p>“I thought I’d try some foods from your homeworld,” she said. “I like to try to understand my enemy so that I can make their destruction that much more painful for them at the end. I’ve been eating your food, listening to your music, consuming your media. I must say, I find your people highly organized and logical, but also painfully dull. Your food is tasteless, your drink weak. Your music is boring.”</p><p>“We believe that mild flavors fail to excite the senses and are therefore conducive to achieving and maintaining mental and emotional control. May I ask your name?”</p><p>“I am merely Prime. You will refer to me as such.”</p><p>Sarek bowed his head. “As you wish, Prime.”</p><p>Prime swiped at a device on her wrist. A holographic screen projected into the air between them, showing their cell.</p><p>“You seem quite attached to Gille. Why?”</p><p>“I am not attached. I simply have a reverence for life and do not wish to see her fall to harm.”</p><p>“Reverence? If that is so, why are you here interfering in our way of life? Why have you sided with Equilibrium to install men who are mentally inferior, and emotionally unstable, into positions of power on our planet?”</p><p>“You believe that simply by being male a person is subpar?”</p><p>“Yes, I believe it, and I am correct.”</p><p>“Men of Earth once had that belief about women.”</p><p>Prime sat back in her chair. “Earth. The planet that deceptive bitch Number One came from? The women of that world allowed lowly men to oppress them?”</p><p>“It wasn’t a matter of allowance. It was a matter of a bigoted, biased way of thinking, combined with a belief that being physically stronger made one superior. There were other types of bigotry from that world. There was a belief that white people were superior to all other races, although science proved that theory wrong time and again.”</p><p>“White people?”</p><p>He explained racism to her, earning looks of confusion and sounds of derision as he did.</p><p>“I care not for the color of one’s skin or spots. Only gender matters here.”</p><p>“Would you agree that the men of Earth were wrong to believe that they were superior to women? To treat them in the same way you treat your men?”</p><p>“I see where you’re going with this. If the men of Earth were wrong about their women, then we must be wrong about our men. I disagree. Perhaps the men of that world truly were superior to their women, if their women were weak and foolish enough to allow the men to oppress them. We will not make that mistake on Sebenn. Our traitor queen has the audacity to appoint her son as heir to the crown?”</p><p>She was incensed now, her face flushed. Sarek watched her with a dispassionate gaze as she struggled to regain control of her emotions.</p><p>“Why the kindness to the woman if you are not emotionally attached to her?”</p><p>“As I have stated, I have a reverence for life in all its forms. I do not wish to see her come to harm, or suffer, especially if it is because of her association with me.”</p><p>“I’ve yet to conclude what to do with you, Sarek of Vulcan. You could be a valuable bargaining tool, or you could be a threat to our movement. I have decided I cannot keep both of you captive. You would be a strain on our resources.”</p><p>“Then let Gille go rather than me. We both know she is of no real value to you. Queen Marre will not negotiate with a terrorist cell—”</p><p>Prime backhanded Sarek, hard, but the blow glanced off him with minimal damage. At least to him. He cocked a brow at his captor as she cradled her hand and looked at him with something akin to fear in her eyes. She put her hand down and pretended it didn’t hurt, though he suspected she may have broken a bone.</p><p>“We are not terrorists! We are patriots fighting to preserve our way of life!”</p><p>“You are bigots trying to hold onto an antiquated system of oppression that favors you over men,” Sarek countered. “You're no more than frightened women afraid that men will gain equality and treat you as horribly as you’ve treated them.”</p><p>“I should just shoot you both and be done with you,” she said using her other hand to reach for her weapon.</p><p>“That would be a rash and unwise decision. You would be giving up your one asset to bring Queen Marre to the table to meet your demands. Which are what, by the way?”</p><p>“A cease to these talks with Equilibrium. A return to the old ways. To kill every member of that goddamned movement and quell any other men, and traitorous women who would dare revolt against their own!”</p><p>“I am flattered you think me so valuable. However, my return, indeed returning both me and Gille, would not warrant such a reversal of the queen’s decision to eradicate gender bias from your society. She intends to include men with equal rights, to change the mindset of future generations of girls and boys alike, so that this kind of bigotry dies out and Sebenn can finally move forward and become part of the Federation within the next fifty years.”</p><p>“You’re saying you’re useless to us then?” Prime asked, laughing scornfully at him. “You just proved my point that men, regardless of species, just aren’t intellectually sharp.”</p><p>Sarek studied her, weighing his next words carefully. “Gille and I are indeed valuable in the sense that keeping us alive and well will garner favor with the queen. She would be more inclined to spare your lives rather than execute you as traitors.”</p><p>“Spare us? For what, a lifelong prison sentence? Spare us so that we can sit back and watch this once great world fall to the influence of lowly men? I’d rather die. We all would. Guards, return him to his cell. Strip him of his clothes when you get him there. Let’s see how long this desert-world creature lasts in the cold of the cells in winter without his clothes, shall we? He is to have nothing to wear. Leave him naked and exposed.”</p><p>“Yes, Prime.”</p><p>They pulled Sarek to his feet and he went willingly, though he could feel his insides clench at the idea of spending even a moment in that frigid cell naked. If these women wanted to do something that posed a serious threat to his life, leaving him vulnerable to the cold would be sufficient.</p><p>The wintry air wrapped around Sarek as soon as his clothes were removed, hugging his body like icy water. There wasn’t a part of him that didn’t immediately freeze. There wasn’t a surface in the room that wasn’t made of stone that would drain him of what heat he had left. It was an unspeakably cruel way to torture a prisoner to death.</p><p>
  <em> Is this no less than I deserve? </em>
</p><p>His thoughts went to Amanda. He had not seen her in months. She’d begun divorce proceedings. Their bond was being slowly dissolved, eroded into nothing by the same priestess who’d bonded them before their marriage ceremony. He could scarcely reach out to her now. Barely sense her. Not that he really tried. He didn’t wish to distress her as his life came to its conclusion.</p><p>There was also Spock. His son loathed him, and as he’d felt Amanda grow more distant as their bond was unraveled, he had finally gained some insight as to how Spock must view him. They’d never truly gotten along. Not after he’d spent Spock’s childhood criticizing everything about him. He’d always felt Spock fell short in every way. Not quite as intelligent, or athletic, or graceful, as full-blooded Vulcan children. He’d given his son a human mother, viewed that part of him as a handicap he’d intentionally given to his son, and then held his son in contempt for what he’d viewed as weaknesses Spock had never asked for.</p><p>The sheer depth of Spock’s contempt had managed to surprise him. The hubris it took for that shock to happen, after denying his son the wife he’d so dearly loved, shamed Sarek now. How prideful could one man be to remain blind to becoming a monster, to treat his son with contempt his entire life, and then be shocked when contempt was all his son could give in return? He’d alienated Sybok, his first born, and then his youngest, just as his father had with him.</p><p>He looked at the snow that began to blow against the window of the cell as a tear slipped down his face. He would die unmourned by his own flesh and blood, with a wife that no longer wanted him. In that moment, he was humbled enough to allow himself to feel the full force of the regret that threatened to drown him. </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ladies and Gents, don't forget that the sweet, talented, (and lbr, naughty) KerryLamb has posted her new fic Mirr Michael on the wall. Set in the Mirrorverse, we get to see into Michael and Spock's erotic adventures. Check it out my dears. You won't be sorry.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Attend Me</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Michael, Spock, and Una beam down to the planet for the first time since leaving six years ago. They make a rather shocking discovery.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I apologize for being a day late with this chapter. Thanksgiving holiday got in the way yesterday. I hope you enjoy! Also, KerryLamb updated her mirror story with a thrilling, and extremely sexy, new chapter. Don't worry. Sexy times for Spock and Michael draws nigh in this story, too.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Michael</b>
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</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>If only a memory would last for more than a few moments. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Michael and Spock have jobs in a clinic. She knows they only treated wounds not sustained in the war so they could uphold the Prime Directive. It’s the feelings that stand out. They might be trapped on Sebenn for years, their Starfleet careers put on hold indefinitely, yet she’s ok with it because she’s with her fellow officers. The people are kind, they’re making friends, and most importantly, she and Spock are living as wife and husband.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The feelings of love and adoration are powerful. In the memory Spock treats a child’s skinned knee. Something about Spock put him at ease enough to allow him to heal the wound. Something he would do for no one else, not even Michael, or Sitta. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You’re going to be a great father to our children.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>He allows the faintest of smiles at that comment and squeezes her hand before leading her out to lunch.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What do you look forward to, Wife?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Being pregnant. That first kick. Feeling the life we create grow inside me.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael pulled herself from the torpor that clouded her mind. Spock sat across the table from her and watched her with concern. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were saying?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry. I was lost in a memory. We were in the clinic with the woman in charge of medicine. Her name is Sitta. I told you that you were going to be a great father to our children. You asked what I looked forward to—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“‘Being pregnant. That first kick. Feeling the life we created growing inside me,’” Spock said, quoting her, without error, even after six years. He swallowed audibly and looked to the floor in shame.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why did you take these memories from me, Spock?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“To keep you from losing something dear to you,” he finally answered, after an extended silence. “Something you still stand to lose if you find out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did I know before the memory wipe? Did I consent?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock shook his head. “No. You know that I wiped your memories, but not why. And I will not tell you. It would render our sacrifice in vain.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sacrifice.” Michael shook her head, looking at Spock with disappointment and anger. “A sacrifice for you, maybe, but not for me. For me it was a violation. Theft.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock bowed his head in acknowledgement of her pain but didn’t offer any further defense. He headed for the door, but her voice halted him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There was nothing dearer to me than you, and the love we shared, Spock. I can’t imagine losing anything else more important to me than you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael, please. Your words cause me pain. I deserve it, I know, but I ask that you show me some mercy. Please.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your refusal to open up hurts me equally as much. You could tell me why but you won’t. Do you really think that’s going to help us overcome this?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He heaved a sigh, let it come out in a huff of frustration, but didn’t face her again. “We arrive at Sebenn within the hour. Be prepared.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael clenched her jaw and her fists, wishing she could physically throttle him into opening up. At the same time she knew she’d never put her hands on him in that manner. “I’ve been prepared for Sebenn since I boarded ship.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked at his profile, saw a hint of a smile, and the muscles in his shoulders relaxed a little before he nodded and strode from the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael hefted her backpack, made certain it was secure, and then went to the quarters across from hers. Amanda bade her enter at the sound of the chime. The room was too warm for most humans to be comfortable, proof that Amanda had spent more years on Vulcan than she ever had on her home planet, Earth. She stood looking out of the window, gazing at warp space streaking past as they approached Sebenn.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock won’t tell me why he wiped my memories.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He didn’t wipe them,” Amanda said, turning to face her. “No one can erase a memory. They can only bury it. He’s skilled at the practice, but apparently your subconscious wouldn’t allow him to take what you hold most precious away from you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why did he do it?” Michael asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s for Spock to tell you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, it’s you! You’re divorcing Sarek because of something he did on Sebenn. Mother, things haven’t been right with this family since we left that goddamned planet. Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a moment, Michael was sure she’d gotten through to her foster mother, that Amanda was going to tell her what Spock, and Una, refused. Then her resolve hardened, and she shut down. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m trying desperately to win Spock’s forgiveness. You of all people know how hard that is to accomplish. I will not risk forever alienating him by revealing his secrets. Michael…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amanda cupped Michael’s face, and she leaned into the warmth of her mother’s warm, soft hands before relaxing into a tight embrace. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock will tell you when he’s ready. Not a moment before.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How do you know he’ll ever be ready?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because I know my son. I know how much he loves you, and how deeply it wounded him to lose you. When he finally allows himself to accept that he can have something with you, he’ll tell you why he buried your memories. He’ll lift the veil with a meld. You two have always been so impatient. Just give him time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Time. That was the one thing that had burdened Michael ever since her memories began to surface. Her foster mother was right. She was an impatient person. She wanted instant gratification.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She wanted to know why Spock tried to rob them of their marriage so she could know who to be angry with. Who to resent. Who to block from her life, forever.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stood on the bridge with the others when they settled into orbit around Sebenn, a green and blue globe, spattered with white clouds, white poles, and a few golden deserts. From space it looked tranquil, though nothing was further from the truth. It was a world in turmoil, a world suffering the pains of labor to birth a new and better way of life for its people. She prayed it wasn’t a stillbirth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Somewhere down there was her beloved foster father, Sarek. She hoped they were treating him well. She hoped he was still alive. Her katra was linked to him. She was certain that if he’d died, she’d know it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All right, listen up,” Pike said, looking at Spock and Michael. Una stood with her winter gear on, with the exception of her coat, which was slung over her arm, the same way she and Spock held theirs, waiting until they reached the transporter room to put it on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You will be beamed to the Diplomatic Prime offices,” Pike said. “A woman named Sitta has taken over the position and is working with the queen and the Equilibrium Prime, Dirre.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We know her. Spock and I do,” Una said. “Michael may not remember her.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I remember her.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Since shielding prevents transporting directly to the palace, she’ll greet you and then escort you to the royal palace to meet with Queen Marre,” Pike continued. “You’ve been given clearance to do whatever is necessary to find and retrieve Ambassador Sarek, so long as the Prime Directive is upheld.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve long since failed to uphold the Prime Directive on Sebenn,” Michael said. “After what happened last time, why bother pretending it still applies?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Last time you were under the influence of what they call the Spawning. That’s not supposed to start manifesting for another few weeks,” said Pike. “Hopefully we’ll be gone by the time that starts. If not, you have your inoculation hypos ready to protect you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>So, Pike wasn’t going to acknowledge her question. Michael took that to mean he agreed with her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Understood,” they said in unison.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve been cleared to remain in orbit for three weeks,” Pike said. “Hopefully this mission won’t take that long. If it does, the </span>
  <em>
    <span>USS West Virginia</span>
  </em>
  <span> will come to relieve us and will remain in orbit until you complete your mission…for better or for worse. Both the Federation and Queen Marre has given us permission to come and go as necessary. We’re here for support should you need us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, Sir,” Spock said, before following Una to the turbolift. Michael looked back at Pike, who watched his first officer with open concern, before he turned in his chair to gaze forward at the viewscreen.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p><p>
  <span>His dreams were chaotic. Restless. He could sense his wife nearby, but he wasn’t sure if that was wishful thinking or if she’d come to Sebenn in search of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Something warm moved beside him. Sarek’s eyes remained closed, his body weak, as whatever was with him shifted. It took great effort to force his mind away from the comfort and safety of a deep meditative state to face his real-world circumstances.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille. She was partially under him, her body as naked as his, the wool blanket they’d been given surrounding them. He recoiled almost at once, his deeply rooted sense of Vulcan propriety offended that she was naked with him. He was a married man. What would Amanda think?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then logic took hold. Body heat and the blanket was what kept him alive. Amanda would not fault him for allowing it. Not that she cared anymore. She was putting him away, after all, and he honestly didn’t blame her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ambassador? You’re awake?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Indeed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stretched, and Sarek caught sight of plump, firm breasts, a pleasant golden in hue, like every other Sebennian. Her green hair and spotting looked faded in an unhealthy way. She shivered as freezing air wafted into the blanket. Sarek pulled it tight and adjusted his body so they were spooning. He attempted to modestly keep from pressing himself against her naked bottom.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How long have I been asleep?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About nine hours,” she said. “I found you on the floor, shivering so hard I thought you were having a seizure. It took some doing but I got you wrapped in the blanket. Apologies, Sir, but I had to warm you up, so I removed my clothing to more efficiently share body heat with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You saved my life,” he said, allowing his gratitude to show through in his voice. “I am forever grateful.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They were still on the floor, but the blanket kept the stone from sucking the heat from their bodies. The sun was just beginning to lighten the room when guards approached. They both remained wrapped in the blanket, unwilling to leave the safety of the warmth it provided.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, well,” Prime said, entering the cell and smirking down at them. “You saved her, she saved you. Are you two falling in love?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They declined to answer. Prime snapped her fingers and guards entered the room, throwing packages at their feet. Sarek was deeply relieved to see they were bundles of clothing and more blankets.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is very generous of you,” Sarek said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“From now on I will only speak to the woman,” Prime said. “You will learn your place, male, which is beneath us. She will be your voice. I would recommend you teach him the traditional code of respect from a male. Understood?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Understood,” Gille said, getting up and putting on the warm clothing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As long as you remember this, I will be inclined to show you some mercies. You’ve been given provisions. Make them last.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Prime turned on her heel and marched away, slamming the cell bars behind her. Sarek eagerly dressed in the warm socks, the weather appropriate trousers, winter tunic, boots, and long coat provided. It didn’t take long before the last vestiges of cold vanished from his body and he was properly warm again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He and Gille busied themselves bundling the blankets on each stone bench to make it padded enough to be comfortable. After that was done, they opened their provisions to see what it offered. There were two days of water and food, but it could be stretched to four if they were careful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Traditional respect,” Gille said, snorting as she took a drink of water. “You will only speak when spoken to. You will bow whenever you encounter a woman. You will keep your eyes downcast, never making eye contact unless ordered to by the woman you’re interacting with. You will walk precisely three paces behind any woman you are with. If drinks and food are served, you are to serve your woman. You are to wait until she has taken her first bite or drink before you may do so.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek nodded but remained quiet, deciding to put into practice what Gille said immediately. He had no doubt their every move was being monitored, and he feared a failure to show their ideals of proper respect would mean the loss of his clothing and blankets, and a return to being stripped bare and left to die on a cold stone floor.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he ate half a ration bar, Sarek cast out with his mind. Not only was his wife close, likely in orbit around the planet, he could sense his ward, Michael.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And if they were together, it stood to reason his son was close by, too.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p><p>
  <span>He hated extreme cold.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sound of the wind rustling through the trees that towered above him was enough to chill Spock. Wind-blown snow made the air hazy. Clouds above, which dumped more of the stuff with furious intensity, darkened the sky, prematurely throwing the day into dusk. Under the wood of the surrounding forest city it was night, the thickly woven branches and greenery of the conifer-like trees blocking out any hint of light from above. Strings of lights glittered in the darkness, strung throughout the branches, making Spock think of the Christmas trees his mother had set up annually in their home to celebrate the holiday.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He swallowed at the memory, at the thought of his mother, as a pang of guilt struck him. He’d been cold, unkind, and resentful. Though he regretted it, in part, another part of him still harbored resentment toward her. It was a lifelong game of tug-of-war, forgiveness and resentment,   and he doubted he’d ever be able to drop the rope and let one side win out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitta, dressed for the weather in all black winter gear, held her hand up in the traditional Vulcan salute. He returned it, feeling a bit of nostalgia at her presence. He’d had some of the best moments of his life right here, on this world, and this woman had borne witness to quite a bit of it, without making him feel judged. He’d lost a lot in that final day, but so had she, when her husband, Nebbe, had been killed in the battle against Hirra, the former Diplomatic Prime.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sitta, it is good to see you again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Una hugged Sitta, whose black hair, Spock noticed, had a few streaks of white in it that hadn’t been there when he’d departed Sebenn six years ago. The Diplomatic Prime looked to Michael and nodded once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I remember you,” Michael informed her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s regaining her memories of Sebenn,” Spock said. “Random memories return to her, rather sporadically.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, it’s good to see you again, Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The trip to the palace was in ground vehicles   with a full military escort. Their convoy, for lack of a better word, drew fearful looks from civilians. Despite it being the capital, they had suffered their fair share of fighting, and deaths of innocent civilians in the fallout. Such a display of military might gave the people pause, especially since they had no context for their presence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once they reached the palace grounds they were driven through an underground tunnel. Heavy doors, made of twelve inches of solid  steel, rolled shut behind them and made Spock feel immediately closed in. He’d never liked being shut in or having to go into small spaces. He’d learned to master his fear response, but he still found it unpleasant.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael’s small hand slipped into his. It was covered with a glove that fit her hand like a second skin, so he could easily feel the delicate bones beneath his fingertips. Had she sensed his unease through some remaining ghost of their marital bond? Had his body language changed? Or did she simply remember, from childhood, how claustrophobic he could be?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He took a moment to gaze into her eyes, to see the love for him that she made no attempt to hide. If only she’d been so keen to be with him over the years before Sebenn. If only she hadn’t been so desperate for Sarek’s approval. Perhaps his father wouldn’t have been able to strong-arm him. He wouldn't have had to make a deal with the devil he’d stopped calling his father.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Don’t blame her for Sarek’s sins</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael held two fingers forward, the touch of a lover. His wife. He didn’t need a bond to sense the depth of her longing for him. He wished he could say he couldn’t deny her, but in truth he couldn't deny himself. Spock touched his fingers to Michael's, and, despite the gloves that separated their flesh, he could sense her through the contact.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In that moment he wondered if perhaps their marriage bond wasn’t resurfacing along with her memories. And he certainly was powerless to put out the spark of joy he felt at the idea that, against all odds, his wife was finding her way back to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re here,” Sitta said, sitting across from them, watching their actions with a soft expression. “Were you given instruction on royal protocol?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, we studied it,” Una said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Queen Marre is quite relaxed in private, but in front of others she’ll expect rigid adherence to protocol. Being off-worlders won’t act as an excuse, especially amongst the council, for any missteps. She is still struggling to keep peace among this new council.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened to the old council?” asked Michael.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t remember, but all of them followed Hirra, took part in her betrayal of the crown. Marre had them all executed. The new council was comprised by popular vote, with each candidate running on a platform to either keep the old ways or embrace new ones. She couldn’t very well ignore all the traditionalists, but she’s made it clear that she will not tolerate disloyalty. Anyone discovered to work against her will be executed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael frowned. “Is she aware no world that practices the death penalty will be admitted into the Federation?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitta nodded. “She is. While she considers admission into the Federation, she has not decided if our planet will join, even if we find peace.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are there any men on this new council?” Spock asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes. Half the council is female, the other half male. Come along.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They followed Sitta from the vehicle and into a lift that took them from the underground entrance to the palace above. Spock had seen many grand halls in his time, having visited quite a few worlds his parents had taken him to during his childhood, but he’d rarely seen one with the kind of natural elegance of the great hall he was led into.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Nothing in the palace interior seemed to be made of anything artificial. There was glass, stone, and lots of wood. Nothing on his tricorder, which he surreptitiously scanned the room with, was an alloy, or constructed of man-made technology such as trexiglass, which was often used to make the viewports of Starfleet ships.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The room was made of vaulted glass ceilings that flooded the room with natural light,  towering windows, and  intricately carved trim. Works of art, from paintings on wood to intricately woven tapestries, adorned the walls. The stone floor was inlaid with the royal emblem of a tree crossed with a sword and a staff. Arches of dark red wood crossed above them, forming the support columns that lined the edges of the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They were led through many halls, all lit with elaborate crystal chandeliers. The Sebenniens didn’t seem fond of rugs or carpeting, opting to keep the floors made of wood that was polished and smooth as glass. They were led into a room. It wasn’t as massive as the great hall but still impressive. Directly ahead sat an empty throne. To the left and right were rows of benches with ornately carved wooden desks, inlaid with computer screens that sat dark, waiting to be activated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Men and women, sixteen people on each side of the room, were mixed among one another rather than being grouped one side or the other by gender. This would make it more difficult to foster a sense of Us v Them, Women against Men. They all sat silently, waiting on the arrival of the queen, and taking in the newcomers with only mild interest. Spock was struck by the explosion of every conceivable color from their hair and spotting.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guests will sit here,” Sitta said, motioning to a small gallery to the left of the throne. She took a seat near them, directly across from a man Una waved to—Dirre. Spock remembered him well, and his leadership during the start of the Sebennian civil war. He would’ve made an excellent Starfleet captain, considering his diplomatic instincts matched his expertise in strategy and combat. He was as willing to talk as fight, but he tried for peace, stringently, first.</span>
</p><p>
  <span> “All arise,” a woman said, after emerging from a side chamber. “Let us bow in honor of Her Majesty, Queen Marre of House Seh.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Everyone in the room stood to their feet and bowed until Marre entered and took her place upon the solitary throne. She wore a long, flowing gown of rich gold, with green accents, and a crown made of gold that looked a great deal like branches of a tree woven together, complete with emerald leaves dotted throughout. A golden scepter was handed to her by another court official, which she accepted and tapped on the ground three times. As she did, the occupants of the room took their seats.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We come to address the matter of the kidnapping of an honored guest on Sebenn,” Queen Marre said. “Sarek, of Vulcan, Ambassador with the United Federation of Planets, was taken against his will by a terrorist group calling itself the Matriarchy. What news does the council have for me on the location of Ambassador Sarek?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The mention of Sarek’s name caused anger and resentment to flare up within Spock. He tried to clamp down on the emotion, only to find it a little difficult, and he wondered if perhaps the Spawning had started prematurely, or if being an alien to the world made him sensitive to it. Or, perhaps, he simply wasn’t capable of keeping a clear head on Sebenn.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He discovered Michael looking at him, frowning, but also clearly curious as to his reaction. She could sense his feelings; he was sure of it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dirre stood and bowed to the queen. “Your Majesty, Equilibrium drones followed the vessel that took the Ambassador captive toward the northern continent before it was shot down over the forests of Vadde. We suspect they could be keeping him in one of the abandoned fortresses there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After Dirre took his seat, a woman on Spock’s side of the room stood. “Your Majesty, The Royal Army concurs with Equilibrium Prime Dirre.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have a question for both Dirre and General Sillu,” Marre said. “How do you expect the people to integrate as equals when you continue to segregate yourselves?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dirre rose to his feet and bowed again. “When there is no longer a need for Equilibrium. When the women of this world treat men with respect rather than condescension. When men are no longer denied equal rights by the very women who claim they accept the new laws that say no person shall be discriminated against because of gender. Only then will Equilibrium cease to exist.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sillu rose to her feet and nodded at Dirre. “I find it quite interesting that Prime Dirre would expect attitudes to change so quickly, especially considering the war hasn’t been officially declared at an end. There are still skirmishes breaking out among the fringes of society among isolated villages. Some of them are unprovoked attacks by his people.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Unprovoked attacks? Slander! Perhaps if women actually made a </span>
  <em>
    <span>genuine</span>
  </em>
  <span> effort to change,” Dirre shot back, “and stopped teaching their children the old ways of putting higher value on female life—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Or perhaps if your Equilibrium settlements would stop attacking towns near to them—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We never act as aggressors first! We only ever defend against attack!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Enough!” Marre said, tapping the scepter against a gong-like device that sat beside her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The entire mood in the room changed, going from relatively relaxed to tense. Some men and women looked at one another with resentment and suspicion, while Spock noted many remained calm in the face of the outburst, even shaking their heads in disappointment of it. Attitudes were changing, he thought. Perhaps not as quickly as Dirre would like, but they were changing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I see this is quite a tender subject to address,” Marre said. “General Sillu, what steps are your—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The herald suddenly spoke up, interrupting her, looking rather startled as she did so. “All Hail His Royal Highness Prince Oppa of House Seh, the First of his Name, the First Crown Prince of Sebenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mama, look!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock looked to get a feel of the room as a young boy of about eight came bounding into the throne room holding a wounded animal that looked similar to a miniature raccoon. Some of the council members looked annoyed, while many of them smiled in slight amusement. Most of the smiling faces were male, but there were some women who looked at the boy without resentment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oppa,” Marre said, giving him a stern look. “What have I told you about interrupting court?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, Mother. I know you’ll have to punish me, but I found him in the kitchen. He’d been eating some of my snacks when he got sick.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Take him to the Royal Wrangler,” she said. “As for you, we’ll discuss punishment later tonight. But you will be punished, Oppa. Do you understand?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I understand.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Run along. After you drop the tommke off with the physician, you’re to return to your room for the rest of the day. You’re grounded.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Mama.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The little boy ran off, never having spared the council so much as a glance, and Spock tried to remember what it was like to be that young and innocent. Then he realized innocence was something he hadn’t been afforded in his father’s house.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let us resume the meeting,” Marre said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The Royal Army is sending out teams to search the Vadde mountains, Your Majesty,” General Sillu said. “Prime Dirre has several teams in position and ready to do the same. Sensor drones are searching for life signs as we speak. As soon as we know something you will be alerted so we may receive your orders.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Does anyone else have any suggestions?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Several council members have agreed that we should arrest the families of the known members to use as leverage against the Matriarchy,” Dirre reported.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Agreed. Do it,” Marre said. “However, I want it made clear, they are to be questioned and then held under humane circumstances. There is to be no torture, not even threats of it. Does the Council understand?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Understood,” the Council said in unison.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Marre dismissed them, and Sitta led them through a door while Marre remained on the throne. Spock followed along, wondering if they would find Sarek, and if he’d be alive when they did.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p>
  <span>Sedda Seh. The name was linked in her mind with the queen, and Sitta, their house name, but she wondered if the village and that family were connected in any other way. It translated into Perpetual Night. She remembered that from before. She wanted to see it before they had to leave Sebenn.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The room they were led into was something of a hub for palace staff. There were walls of computer terminals, all showing information about the palace, security, activity near it, weapons status showing at the ready should any unauthorized vehicle attempt to fly or drive too close, or lock weapons onto it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Servants also moved about, most of them male, Michael noted, while the higher positions were occupied by females. This was a world in transition from one way of thinking to another, and it was clear that old prejudices still held a great deal of sway. She watched staff push carts laden with food and drink to and from what looked to be the entrance of a kitchen, while others pushed carts loaded with cleaning supplies.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The queen herself entered the room, the last to leave the council meeting, speaking in hushed tones with Dirre and General Sillu. Both snuck glances at each other as the queen spoke, looking at one another with naked mistrust and hostility.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Commander,” Marre said, nodding at Una. “I trust the ship you have in orbit is also scanning for signs of Ambassador Sarek’s biological signature?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, but no luck so far,” Una answered. “The security grid does quite a bit to block our sensors.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I would lower them, but the risk to the queen and family is too great,” General Sillu said. “In fact, I suspect the Matriarchy is hoping we’ll be desperate enough to locate the ambassador to do just that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m certain our combined forces will be suitable to locate Ambassador Sarek,” Dirre said. “If they work together.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t you mean if they’re capable of working together?” Marre said, openly frustrated. “That little outburst in the meeting did nothing to help further our cause of reconciliation between the genders in the wake of the war.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are quite right, Your Majesty,” General Sillu said. “I will correct the behavior in future.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As will I,” Dirre said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I certainly hope so,” she said, turning her attention to Spock. “I have been made aware that Ambassador Sarek is your father. You have my deepest sympathies, and I assure you I will do everything in my power to see him safely returned to you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael felt a rush of hatred for Sarek, for the second time that day. It was tinged with resentment and bitterness. She knew it wasn’t her emotions, but Spock’s. They didn’t get along, she knew that much, but what caused him to feel such animosity towards the man who’d raised them both? What the hell happened between them the last time they were on Sebenn?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, Your Majesty. That is quite reassuring,” was the answer Spock gave, but Michael knew it was only a diplomatic response, one the queen expected to hear. While their relationship had always been strained, there was nothing in their history, that she was aware of, to explain this level of loathing from Spock. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As soon as we have a lead you will be notified,” General Sillu said. “Until then, there is nothing to do but wait.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll be included in retrieval?” Una asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We wouldn’t dream of leaving you out,” Dirre said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“In the meantime, you may take rooms here, in the palace, but it might be best to return to Sedda Seh?” Marre said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think it’s necessary to return—” Sitta began, but Marre overruled her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nonsense. I’m sure there are people there who would like to see them again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitta bowed her head, though she gave her sister a look of displeasure as she did. “Come along. We’ll stream to Sedda Seh.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Stream?” Michael asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That is what they call transporters here,” Spock explained.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael expected another long trek through the massive construct of the royal palace, but they were taken into a room past the computer consoles. Inside were several arches with transporter pads beneath them. Sitta gave the destination to the computer and then walked through, vanishing in a flash of light.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Their transporters are a lot faster than ours. Almost instantaneous,” Una said, smiling, before walking through. Michael went next, followed by Spock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The world changed in the blink of an eye. She went from the temperature-controlled warmth of the palace to the frigid air of a tree village. They’d transported to a spot just outside the tree line. Michael remembered sitting on the bench that was nearby, having a conversation with Amanda about something related to Sarek and her. What exactly, remained a mystery, but she had a feeling it was nothing good.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know this place,” Michael said, looking at the familiar bridges and steps carved into the sides of the trees. Some were hollowed out to accommodate large crowds, such as a banquet hall, but most buildings were built around the trees, integrating them, and their branches, into the architecture.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The strings of lights were something I loved. They look like stars,” she said, taking Spock’s hand as she looked into the never ending darkness brought on by the thick foliage of the trees. Sedda Seh. Perpetual Night. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another memory flashed before her. She and Spock were outside of Sarek’s personal shuttle. She was very happy about their visit with him. Something good had happened. He’d spun her around in a completely open display of emotion, without shame for people witnessing it, not that anyone paid them any attention. Something tried to nag at her, at the back of her mind, but she dismissed it. She was being paranoid.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Take me home. I need you on me. In me. Now.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“In that case, Wife, attend me, and I will attend you in return.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“‘Take me home. I need you on me, in me, now,’” Michael whispered, repeating the words she’d said then, looking up at Spock. “‘In that case, Wife, attend me, and I will attend you in return.’”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock’s eyes closed as his breath exhaled in a cloudy stream before his face. “Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Something was wrong, but I dismissed it,” she said. “I hope you’ll tell me soon, Spock. I need to know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, my God!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Una gasped, her hands coming to her face, as she stared at the edge of the village. Michael turned to see a tall, well-muscled man with pink hair and spotting emerge from the trees, wearing black winter gear that clung to his form. He looked at Una and the others in shock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Beside him, holding his hand, was a human child, a boy of about six, that bore an unmistakable likeness to Una. He had her black hair, though his eyes were also black, and not a single spot. Nothing outwardly marked him as being half Sebennian. Spock gripped Una's arms to steady her as her knees threatened to buckle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tears streamed down her face as she stared at them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Linn! You’re alive!”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. In The Human Way</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In which Sarek crosses a line in his quest for survival. Spock and Michael have to consider living arrangements. Marriage bonds prove difficult to bury.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>They nasty, y'all. Real nastaaaay.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The days became a blur. Time lost its meaning. He and Gille spent the time talking about each other’s lives, their families, though Sarek remained mum about alienating both his sons, using his ward’s love for him to force his younger son to bury her memories of their marriage out of shame for their union, and how doing so caused him to lose that son, and cause his own marriage to collapse.  Instead, he spoke of the past. Of when things had been better for all of them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not once did he break the protocol of traditional respect.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He even grew comfortable having to shower alongside Gille. The shower’s stone floors were as icy as their cell, but the water was hot, and they were allowed to use heated stones to warm the room before disrobing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t until now that Gille broke the unspoken rule of not gazing upon one another while naked. She looked him over, her gaze pausing at his manhood, before she hung her head, unaware he’d caught her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sir?” she said, once they’d returned to their cell, after being allowed to dry their hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I peeped at you in the shower.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am aware.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you angry with me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I rarely indulge in anger. I certainly will not simply because you ‘peeped.’”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still, I apologize.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Apology accepted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The silence stretched between them. Minutes turned to hours with nothing to occupy their time. As the light faded and cast the cell into darkness, guards arrived and escorted them both from the cell and into the room in which he’d met with the Prime.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A feast was laid out on the table. Prime sat in her usual seat and watched as Sarek pulled Gille’s chair out for her. He sat at the table in silence, staring at the wall across from him. It was a testament to his time in captivity,  dulling his senses, that a woman was able to use a device to blow something into his face. It has a musky undertone to the scent. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What was that?” Gille asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Prime raised a brow at her boldness. She didn’t answer until Gille lowered her gaze obsequiously to the table. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s an inoculation from the Spawning. Something we’ve been working on. We don’t need this freakishly strong brute losing control like he and his son did last time they were on Sebenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek kept his silence, lest he incur punishment, but he’d been under the impression the events of six years prior were to be kept silent under orders of the queen. His desire to speak must’ve been obvious because Prime smirked at him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My, my. Vulcan men are so easy to train,” she said. “You haven’t been observed breaking protocol even once.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek bowed his head in acknowledgement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t just look at the food. Eat it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek served Prime, putting whatever dish she pointed to on her plate. He then served Gille, then himself. Once the others began eating, he allowed himself to eat, though it was difficult to maintain decorum with his belly empty, and having subsisted for days on stale rations.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It won’t be long before the queen finds us,” Prime said. The decoy we sent to the Vedde forests will only fool them for so long. Allies on the council will hold them off for as long as possible. We’ll have to move again, soon. But for now, I’m willing to upgrade your living arrangements. You will be allowed a room and a bed. You should consider putting it to good use.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille coughed, Prime’s words causing her to lightly aspirate it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The ambassador is a married man, Prime,” said Gille.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So? His wife isn’t here now. There’s no shame in using a man. He’s yours, after all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille bowed her head. Sarek was relieved when they resumed the meal with no further discussion until the dishes were cleared.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to need the layout of the queen’s private chambers.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille looked to Sarek before clearing her throat. “Apologies, Prime, but I’ve never seen the queen’s private chambers.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wasn’t speaking to you. I was speaking to the little man, here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have not visited the queen’s private chambers, either,” Sarek said. “It would’ve been inappropriate. Even if I did, I would not tell you. I would not betray her to a known enemy, as it would be a violation of the Prime Directive.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Prime scoffed. “Yes, your do-not-interfere policy. Doesn’t your very presence here, trying to negotiate an end to the war, interfere with the natural development of our society?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” he answered. “Both sides in the conflict agreed they were ready for peace talks. They, on their own, decided an end to the hostilities was best for their people and their planet. I did not influence that decision in any way. I was invited, rather than insinuating myself into this conflict, to try to broker peace between both sides. This is not a violation of the Prime Directive.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There has been a lot less fighting and killing since his arrival,” Gille pointed out. “What you’re doing only throws everything in danger, Prime. Don’t you want peace?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I want a return to the old ways, and he’s going to help me achieve that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will not.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll die a hard, slow death if you  don’t.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then so be it,” Sarek answered. “I will do nothing to help you sabotage the peace talks or endanger the cease fire.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Prime sighed. “We shall see. Guards. Escort them to their new room.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They stood and followed the guards to their new quarters. It was round, smaller than their cell, with wooden walls, a small hearth, and a very narrow window with metal bars on the outside. A pile of wood, some tinder, and a box of matches had been provided. Sarek started a fire, his head pounding with a headache. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It didn’t take long for the room to warm. Gille tried the door to find it locked, unsurprisingly. She also tried the window. It opened easily enough, but the bars outside were completely unyielding.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re strong,” she said to Sarek. “See if you can do anything with these bars.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He came over and tried to shift or bend them but without success. They were old, rusty, but they were strong enough to withstand his attempts to bend them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d really hoped you could bend them, or break them loose,” she said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We are quite high up,” Sarek said, peering through the window as the cold air began to numb his face. He pulled the glass down to keep the heat in. “I would not fit through the window, and even if you could, the fall would surely kill you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille sighed and collapsed on the small bed that had been provided for them. It creaked under Sarek’s weight when he came to sit beside her. The softness of the bed surprised him. He expected it to be only marginally softer than the stone benches of their old cell.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re just going to waste away in this cell until they decide one or both of us is useless and kill us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Try not to think such thoughts, Gille. There are people from both the Crown and Equilibrium looking for us. The Federation has also arrived by now. Surely they will find us before that happens.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You think so?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What if they move us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That could delay locating us, true, but they cannot evade all three forces for long.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Prime let slip that they have help in high places,” Gille said. “Equilibrium had operatives all the way up to the queen. I guess they do, too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Speculation will only breed fear,” Sarek said, his mind going to Prime’s earlier statement about his and Spock’s behavior six years ago. “If you like I could teach you some Vulcan mediation techniques to calm your anxieties.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She snorted, though it was more amused than derisive. “No thank you, Sir. I’ll keep my anxieties. That’s how I survive.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded his head once. “You may call me Sarek, if you like. Sir is quite formal for this informal setting.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Agreed…Sarek.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With their bellies full and nothing else to do after night fell, Sarek and Gille curled up under the blankets, lulled to sleep by the crackling of the fire.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hours later Sarek awoke from dreams of an explicitly sexual nature, in which his limbs were entangled with Gille’s. Even after he awoke, he realized the desires in his body did not bring him shame, and neither did the fact that he’d placed his hand squarely between her legs where he gently rubbed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The lust inside him was powerful. He wanted her. He needed her. His cock was stiff between his legs, pressing against his trousers, yearning to be inside her. Gille looked up at him in surprise before her eyes darkened with lust for him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am sorry,” Sarek said. “I do not know what possessed me to—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She cut his apology off by pushing him onto his back and mounting him. He was strong enough to fight her off, at least physically, but he could feel his mind clouding over with desire. As she ground herself against his erection, Sarek knew he was not going to put up a fight. He was going to give in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And he was going to relish it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sitta approached, holding up a hypospray. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“An immunization, Spock,” she explained. “Something that should help you resist any imbalances that bring about your emotional instability while on Sebenn. I think it’ll be more effective than the concoction your father invented. No offense intended.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“None taken.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She held the spray to his nose, rather than his arm, and sent a puff of something into his face. He blanched at the smell.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitta took a call on her wrist unit. He couldn’t hear the other half of the conversation. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything is on schedule. You have to stop calling me so often... You’re a distraction...if you can’t handle your guest then perhaps I should assign someone who can...Fine. Goodbye.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is there a problem?” Spock asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitta smiled and shook her head. “No. Just some issues with a couple of  people at the office. Nothing to concern yourself with.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock focused on the village.  Nothing about Sedda Seh had changed since their last visit. Absolutely nothing, which made Spock feel as though he’d never left. The fire damage had been erased both by Sebennian skill, and time to let nature reclaim what had been damaged. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He watched Una sitting at the long benches where meals were served, chatting quietly with Linn. Their son, Unnat, named in her honor, sat on his father’s lap, wary of his mother. So far, he’d only seen her in pictures and heard of her through stories. He looked at her with shy eyes, and offered the occasional smile, but he had yet to go to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I remember that one,” Michael said, pointing to a cabin built into the trees. “It was used as our holding cell at first. Then it became our home.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock had once been glad to see it destroyed by fire. He knew nothing in the original room, such as their table, their replicator, or their bed, especially their bed, had survived, but it had been rebuilt exactly as it had been before, and it brought back a flood of memories that were at once joyful and sorrowful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s currently empty,” Sitta said. “It’s still  purposed as a holding cell, but we’ve rarely had to use it. If you’d like to stay there until we receive word on the ambassador’s whereabouts you’re more than welcome.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span> Spock was going to object, but Michael spoke first. “Thank you, Sitta, we’d love that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They were given the lock code so they could come and go as they pleased and then headed up to the room, leaving Una and Linn speaking in hushed voices.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I remember so much from this room,” Michael said upon entering.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock could remember, as well, though he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to return to the train of thought that he could have something real with Michael, either here or elsewhere.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We fought in this room,” she said. “I divorced you. Then we came together the next day and had amazing makeup sex and rekindled our bond.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock walked over to the heating unit and dialed in a temperature of 25.5 ℃. It was a little too warm for humans, a little too cool for Vulcans, but a tolerable compromise for them both. Michael shut their blinds, blocking out the white wall of mist and snow that shrouded the mountains beyond the village. She’d already taken off her jacket, and the cold had her nipples standing at stiff peaks. At least he told himself it was the cold.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you smell something?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael sniffed the air and shook her head. “No, but my sense of smell isn’t as keen as yours.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It smells like the inoculation spray Sitta just gave me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have no idea. Want to ask her about it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock gave a slight bow of his head. “It is of no matter.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what would you like for dinner?” she asked, and perused the menu on the replicator. The Sebennians had downloaded an index of foods from many Federation worlds.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Beef stew,” he said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael immediately turned to him, her brows lifted in surprise. “I beg your pardon?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Beef stew,” he repeated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t eat meat, Spock.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have eaten meat before. It does not make me ill as one would expect.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She hesitated to order, instead staring him in the eye. He felt a stab of annoyance. He was hungry, a headache was threatening to settle in, and he didn’t want to fight over a simple matter like dinner. Immense relief flooded him when she lifted a shoulder in a shrug. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine. Beef stew it is,” she said. “Once again they put the cabinets too high up for me to reach the dishes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll kiss them—get them—for you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She couldn’t have missed his eyes glued to her breasts and her nipples still poking at the fabric when the Freudian slip occurred. She smiled, playing it coy, as she turned back and completed their order. She brought a small pot of beef stew over to the table as the replicator began to put out a pan of cornbread.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This was your grandmother’s recipe,” Spock said, nodding at the cornbread. “From your father’s side.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. They kept the recipe even after I left last time. Perhaps they like it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Plimine wine with dinner?” he said, going to the replicator to order it. A chilled bottle was served, and he grabbed two glasses.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mmm, pairs well with the stew,” Michael said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They kept conversation to a minimum, choosing to eat mostly in silence, though Michael looked at him strangely every time he took a bite of the stew. Did she fear he’d become ill? It was a meaty stew, with lots of beef, and he ate heartily. Though he couldn’t stop his eyes from wandering to Michael’s breasts, and further down her body until the table blocked the view.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The last time he’d buried his face between her thighs had been in this very room. Or the original room, before fire had engulfed it. The replica was perfect, including the lights that illuminated the ceiling like stars in the heavens. He remembered, vividly, the moans he’d milked from her with each stroke of his tongue. He wanted to do it again. Soon. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When dinner was finished, Michael sat back  in her seat to regard him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you have a taste for meat the last time we were here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. This is a new development.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She nodded, but he could see her concern for him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dessert?” she asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>As long as it’s you</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Spock thought, remembering her salty sweetness and how she’d coated his chin as he lapped at her in a fruitless effort to quench his insatiable thirst for her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Me?” Michael said. “You just thought you’d like me for dessert.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It would not be wise to share a bed with you, Michael,” Spock said, rising and reaching for his coat. The idea that he could share close quarters with her was absurd. Especially with lust beginning to cloud his judgment. “I will find accommodations elsewhere.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll stay…here…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael leaned forward, gripping her head and moaning. A few moments later he felt her. He felt their marriage bond struggling to reassert itself despite his efforts to bury everything where her subconscious could not reach it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock?” She stood, a look of panic in her eyes. He could feel her pain, her fear and confusion. He could feel the deluge of her memories surfacing like bubbles from the deep. One by one, they came to the forefront of her mind, bursting as they did and reclaiming their rightful place in her consciousness. The rush of it was too much for her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He reached for her, catching her just before she could fall. A moment later he took out his communicator and called for Sitta. Federation medicine was decades behind Sebennian medicine. She told him to bring her to the clinic. He quickly wrapped her in her jacket and hurried with her down the steps and toward the tree both of them had once held jobs in as medics.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Please, be all right, Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If forcing her to recover her memories on her own brought her harm, he’d never forgive himself.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The pain was unbearable.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She felt Spock lift her into his arms. Then there was intense cold. He was running with her. She could experience sensations of what happened to her physical body, but she couldn’t see. The world was dark. She’d gone blind. Her head throbbed as though she’d woken up to the world’s worst hangover. Her stomach threatened to revolt and force up the dinner she’d just eaten.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was Sitta’s voice. Somewhere in the background she heard Una and Linn asking what was wrong. Spock’s deep voice tried to fill them in. She could feel Sitta’s cool fingers touching her face. She applied some kind of device to her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know you’re in pain,” Sitta said. “I’m going to put you to sleep now. This will pass, soon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can’t see! I’m blind.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to find out what’s going on, Michael. Just be still. Spock, it’s time you educated me on the mind meld you spoke of the last time you were here…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The wooden ceiling of the clinic. Recessed lighting that spilled golden light over the room. It was 0430 standard time. She knew it as surely as she knew she’d returned to Sebenn. She moved under the warm blanket that had been thrown over her. Her bladder was full to bursting.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And Spock…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She could feel him again, in full. Their marriage bond was intact. It was frayed, like an old rope, weaker than it should be, having atrophied over time from nonuse, but it was intact, struggling to reassert itself. She sat up and swung her legs from the side of the bed. Spock lay on a cot beside hers, asleep, but he wouldn’t be for long. Not when she stopped holding back in their bond.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After relieving herself, Michael came to sit on her cot.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Spock</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His eyes opened. She reached for him through their bond and felt his immense relief that she’d awakened. She felt his love for her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael,” he said, sitting up. “You’re awake. Your vision has returned. I am glad.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I remember, Spock,” she said. “I remember everything that happened here, from the shuttle crash to our last night together. It was 0430 hours standard time when you invaded my mind and buried my memories. That’s why I keep waking up at that exact time. I still don’t know </span>
  <em>
    <span>why</span>
  </em>
  <span>. I don’t know how Father is tied to it, or why you revile him to this degree. What made you do something so terrible as to bury my memories? We’ve lost six years, Spock. I need to know why.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You say you remember everything. Do you remember Sarek’s reaction to seeing us kissing?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That fight after, when you said anything you could think of to make him lose control,” she said, nodding. “I remember. Then you went in to talk to him, and when you finished your conversation Sarek had changed his mind. Something about it felt off but I was so happy he accepted us I didn’t question it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock heaved a deep sigh and steepled his fingers as he gathered his thoughts. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He didn’t accept us. Sarek gave me an ultimatum. I was to bury your memories and put you away as my wife, forever, or he would never forgive us. He would never speak to either of us again. He would disown both of us and have my name removed from the family tree, as he did to Sybok.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The news hit Michael to her core. She got off the cot, thinking once again that she might be sick. Shock was too light a word for what she felt. She was devastated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” she said. “No, Sarek wouldn’t use me like that to break us up. He loves both of us. He would’ve come around.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He made a vow,” Spock continued. “He would cut us from his life, completely. He wouldn’t even allow mother to communicate with us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael doubled over, folding her arms over her middle where physical pain wounded her. The truth was so much worse than she’d imagined. Spock pulled her up, cradled her to his chest.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You see? I know how deeply you love him. He would’ve taken mother from both of us. He would’ve had our names shamed among all Vulcans simply because he was embarrassed. I had to give in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He truly did this? He threatened to abandon us both and take mother?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She clutched at his uniform tunic, fisting the material as she held onto him. She let herself absorb what her father had done. He’d not only withhold affection, he’d make his displeasure with their union public. He’d have put them away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nobody on Vulcan would’ve cared about us being married. We’re not actually blood related.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She felt Spock nod. She felt his emotions in full as he stopped shying away from their bond.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He cared, Michael. And as you are coming to learn that with Sarek of Vulcan, the only thing that matters, even when family is concerned, is what he cares about. Everything else loses value in the face of that. Everyone else is expendable. His arrogance knows no bounds.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mother knew? And she went back with him anyway?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes. But I think he went too far, even in her love for him. She cannot stand to be with him. She cannot choose her husband over her children.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You pulled away from her?” Michael said, looking up at him. She felt him tense, become defensive. “I’m not judging. I would’ve too, I think.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He relaxed against her, his breath a puff of relief. “I could not, in my mind, separate her from him, from the monster he is, if she chose to remain with him. Michael, when we find Sarek, you must pretend not to remember—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck Sarek!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The intensity of her rage surprised her as much as it did Spock. He loosened his grip on her and frowned down at her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck him,” she insisted. “We had something beautiful. We were happy and you took it from us—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You blame me as much as him. Michael, I told you why—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut up and listen, Spock. We were happy and you took it from us because you couldn’t stand the idea of me living with a shamed name. You were trying to protect me and protect Amanda. I don’t blame you, but I am angry that you didn’t tell me this so I could make my choice. You robbed us of six years of our lives. For a human that’s a lot of time. We might even have children by now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tried to turn from her, but Michael gripped his face and forced him to look her in the eye. She could feel his shame, his hurt. His regret. That was enough punishment from her. She wouldn’t pile it on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, I’m angry, but you sometimes get angry with those you love. It doesn’t diminish the love you feel for them. I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again. This time listen to it. This time take it to heart. Never again will I side with anyone against you. I’m your wife, and I’ll be your greatest ally. Always.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock’s eyes had flushed green and moistened with unshed tears. “Please.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But Michael pressed on, undeterred. “Right or wrong, I’m with you. For you. Spock, had you told me what Sarek had threatened you with and given me the chance to make my own decision, I assure you, I would’ve chosen you over him. I would’ve sided with you. Don’t let anyone come between us ever again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The tears fell from his eyes. His arms wrapped around her, pulled her close in a hug almost too tight for her to bear, but she endured. She hugged him close, felt his body shake as he tried to hide the sound of his tears.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Promise me something?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded against her, too emotional to speak. She let his hot tears soak into the collar of her uniform.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t ever make another major decision about us without consulting me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will not. I vow it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s time to go back to our little love shack, Spock. We have a bond to renew and vows to speak. The only thing that’ll tear us apart again will be death itself. Understand?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He took a deep, shaky breath and wiped at his eyes before holding up two fingers for her to touch.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Attend, Wife.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With great joy, Michael joined her fingers to Spock’s and allowed him to lead her from the clinic.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The cabin was locked tight against the outside world. As far as they were concerned, there was only the two of them in all the universe now. Michael allowed Spock to take hold of her face, trusting him not to rob her of the memories she’d recovered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will never take what is yours from you again,” he said, reading her thoughts. “Never again will I violate you in that way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She nodded at him and caressed his face before she began the ritual.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, it is I,” she said, citing the ancient greeting of marriage.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael. Parted from me and never parted. Never and always touching and touched.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock. Parted from me and never parted. Never and always touching and touched.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael closed her eyes as Spock made a connection with her mind. She took in a deep breath and exhaled, allowing him to penetrate her conscious with his own as surely as he was going to penetrate her with his body in moments. Their bond was already there, but he strengthened it as he touched her mind again.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Michael, I love you more than I love my next heartbeat. I am yours as you are mine</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was deeper into her spirit than she could ever remember him being. Perhaps because time, and loss, had helped her to realize just what he was to her, and how deeply she loved him. There was no resistance anymore. There was no fear of discovery and judgment from others. There was only the two of them, their minds and hearts, and their souls, entwining. She was ready to fully commit, just as he’d always dreamed of, and his heart was filled with joy that stole her breath away.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I love you, Spock, more than I love my next breath. I am yours as you are mine</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This time the pon farr wasn’t upon Spock as it had been six years ago. He was still relatively clear of mind, but there was something affecting him. It was this world; she was certain of it. He was susceptible to the Sebennian people, and their chemistry. The Spawning wasn’t upon them yet, but perhaps the cycle had started within the people, changing their body chemistry as they geared up for the main event, and it affected him, giving him appetites that he wouldn’t normally have.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The room was warm, reminding her of Vulcan, and how she’d struggled to adjust to constant heat on the planet when Sarek had first brought her home. None of that mattered now, as a different kind of heat settled into her. Spock stood still, allowing Michael to take her time removing his clothes until he was naked before her. He let her take pleasure in the act of disrobing him, of revealing his body to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then it was his turn. He was fully erect before she’d so much as kissed him. His lust for her was clear through their bond, and the heat of his gaze as he pulled one item of clothing after another from her body.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She’d waited for years for this reunion, but she knew Spock had, as well. She wanted tonight to be about him, for he’d carried the secret of Sarek’s treachery for the past six years in the hopes she could have the father she’d always wanted and needed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Take what you need, Husband.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His hands trailed slowly over her body, relishing every inch of skin that passed beneath his palms. She marveled at how lost he was in the moment, of turning her so she could climb on the bed, but then getting behind her and reaching around to run his hands over her breasts. He palmed the hardened peaks of her nipples and squeezed. He let one hand coast down her belly and dip between her legs, wetting his palm as he rubbed her. She leaned back; the musky scent of her arousal was strong, even to her human nose.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock breathed deep of her scent and she felt his cock pulse against her right cheek. Already he was leaking as he continued lazily rubbing her clit, before moving over her lips and then teasing her entrance by coming close to entering her, but not quite getting there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your body is my home as much as your heart,” he whispered. “I have been so very homesick, Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He placed a hand flat on her back, running it over her flesh before urging her to lean forward. His need to be inside her was great, and it made her throb with anticipation of taking him inside her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There had been so many times when Michael was sure she’d never again feel Spock pressing at her, seeking entrance. There’d been moments she was sure she’d never feel him through their bond. Never call him husband again. Never hear him call her Wife, or call for her to attend. But all of that was back now. Against all odds her love for Spock had led her back to him. She’d learned the truth. He was hers again, just as she was his.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She hadn’t been penetrated in six years. She hadn’t felt this man slip inside her in so long that she’d forgotten the feel of his length and girth stretching her, filling her so completely. The pleasure was so intense it was nearly painful. A keening mewl escaped her as she felt Spock’s hand rub up her spine, sending shocks of pleasure to her through his touch.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Quivering thighs threatened to collapse beneath her. Her arms shook as he continued pushing in until he was buried fully within her, his thighs and the flat plane of his belly warm against her bottom and legs as he put himself flush against her. His hand continued to caress her back, now beaded with sweat, communicating through his touch the depth of his desire for her.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It has been far too long, Wife</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Show me how much you love me, Husband</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock withdrew and she felt her honey spill down the inside of her thigh as he did. She was so wet she could feel herself literally dripping for him. The pressure of him moving inside her made her tighten inside. The tension building with each stroke.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Harder…</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He responded by pushing her flat onto the bed, but her ass lifted in an effort to stay connected to him, unwilling to separate from him. She sought him out, grinded against him with a desperate need to feel him pounding into her. His lust was now tinged with amusement as he leaned over her, his bigger body pressing her down. His hair was course against her back, just as his breath was hot on the nape of her neck. His teeth were sharp as he bit down onto her soft flesh.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Who am I to deny you, Wife?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>So he gave Michael what she needed. He thrust into her as deep and as hard as he could. She buried her face in the pillow, hoping to mute the cries she couldn’t control. They surged from her with every thrust, but Spock wouldn’t allow her to keep her silence. He didn’t give a damn who heard Michael in her pleasure. He gripped her neck and squeezed, forced her to arch her back as he pulled her head back, threatening to cut off her wind. She was at his mercy, completely, but she trusted him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He thought her name through their bond as he neared climax. She could hear he was near completion in the way he breathed, feel it in the way his muscles tensed. She arched her back, knowing she couldn’t hold back another second. Neither could he. They let go, together, their minds and bodies humming in unison as they found release.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock,” she panted, lamenting the loss of his presence as he withdrew.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He answered by taking her in his hands and turning her to face him. He plundered her mouth in a deep, passionate, breath-stealing kiss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love you,” he said. “I will never forgive myself for taking away your choice six years ago.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s a shame. Because I’ve forgiven you. Let’s make up for lost time instead of wallowing in guilt, shall we?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stroked the side of her sweat-slicked face and nodded. She made room for him on the narrow bed by taking her place between him and the wall. Outside the wind howled through the trees. Spock shivered at the sound.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to request a transfer from the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Equinox</span>
  </em>
  <span> to the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Enterprise</span>
  </em>
  <span>. If you don’t mind,” she said. “I don’t want to spend another day away from you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Our captains will approve such a request,” he said. “You likely would be assigned to a different officer in Sciences since you’re my wife.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m thinking of going into a different trade, actually. Security.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock shifted and looked down at her. “That is a notoriously dangerous job, Michael. You’d be required to go on away missions. Most of those officers die when things turn dangerous.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be fine, Spock. I’m quite a capable woman.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Indeed, you are,” he acquiesced. “I just fear losing you again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll outlive me by decades,” she said. “But let’s not talk about such things now. For now, let’s name our children. I want lots, and lots of children with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let us plan our human wedding, first,” Spock said. “Captain Pike would be more than honored to join us in marriage, in the human way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You want a human wedding?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It would please Mother.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They continued to talk. Their voices a low, contented hum in their cabin while outside nature lashed the ground and the trees with icy vengeance.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Regression</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>WARNING: This chapter contains non-con and dub-con elements. </p><p>In which Sarek goes too far. Spock has a theory to what’s going on with him. Una and her son get closer. Spock and Michael have an intense encounter that makes her fear for his sanity.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Y’all, thank you to KerryLamb for writing the Spichael sex in this chapter. All hail the smut queen!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p><p>
  <span>There should’ve been some sense of guilt. He’d not shied away from his lusts in the dark hours of the night, nor had he tried to hide it from Amanda. She knew full well what had occurred, and blocked him as a result of it, shutting down on him so completely he felt truly alone for the first time since they’d bonded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Part of him was impressed with just how disciplined her mind was. Yet, he didn’t care. He wanted her to know. Wanted to hurt her as she'd hurt him when she'd started the divorce process. There was something malicious in his emotions. He simply wasn’t capable of feeling anything other than mindless need or pernicious glee at knowing he'd caused someone pain. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille’s toes curled against his ass as he rode her, hard, without concern for her safety. He wrapped a hand around her neck as she cried out beneath him, begging for mercy he couldn’t show. He’d given in completely, turning into a mindless beast, until he climaxed, emptying himself into her for the third time that night.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Stop, stop!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She tried to push him away, but her resistance aroused something primal in him. He felt like a </span>
  <em>
    <span>le-matya</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and she was a simple, weak, tiny </span>
  <em>
    <span>askor</span>
  </em>
  <span> trapped beneath his claws. The more she struggled, the more his instincts shouted at him to dig in deeper. He wasn’t even aware of the women who barged into the room and pulled him off her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stood to his feet, his need to fuck or fight overcoming him. He’d satisfied his lusts for sex, but he had not satisfied his lust for blood. He gripped each guard by the back of their head and smashed them together with such force he heard their skulls crack open. Again and again he pounded them together, reducing their heads to bloody pulp, long after death had stilled their struggles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You fucking animal!” Gille shouted, getting up from the bed and running for the open door. He saw the blood running down her thighs. He must’ve caused her terrible pain, and wanted to inflict more. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A moment later two more guards appeared, this time armed with tranquilizers. It took four darts to knock him out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When he awoke, he was on his back, in the cell, alone, sunlight streaming through the window. His mind had cleared considerably, but he'd retained full memory of his actions. The floor near the entrance had puddles of blood, brain, and hair, proof he’d murdered two people in a mindless rage.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>My struggles will soon be at an end</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought. Surely they would kill him now. He’d killed two of theirs so they were bound to put him to death.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The doors opened and Gille was shoved into the room. Her clothes had been changed but she still bore the scent of his sweat and cum. She stepped over the gore and went straight across the room, as far as she could get from him. The door slammed shut, locking them both in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gille—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Stay away!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She’d curled in on herself, wrapped her arms around her legs, which she’d brought up to her chest. He swallowed his regret and opened the window, hoping to air the room clear of the odors of sex and blood.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you going to kill me?” Gille asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If I was, I would have done it by now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why did you change like that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I do not know. Something happened, drove me to my most base, primal instincts,” he explained. “I became what Vulcans used to be, in the days before we embraced logic. Mindless, violent, willing to do harm to anyone, without regret, in the moment. That very regret has found me now that my logic has returned. I am genuinely sorry for what I did to you. I am sorry for the lives I took.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s how your people used to be?” Gille said. “Mindless killing machines?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He bowed his head once and shut the window, before he stoked the fire to allow its heat to fill the room. He needed something to do with his hands. He needed something to take his mind off things. He didn’t trust himself alone with Gille anymore. He feared he would do her harm. Rape her. Kill her. Perhaps both, but not necessarily in that order. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Most of the day passed before the door opened again. Five guards, all of them armed and with their weapons trained on him, waited in the hall.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You two, come!” one of them said, glaring at Sarek with naked hatred.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Without resisting, he followed Gille from the room, fully aware of the guns trained on him. His guilt was so heavy he considered making himself a threat so they could take him out. He’d betrayed his family, lost all hope of a relationship with any of them, bedded another woman before his marriage had been officially declared at an end, and murdered two people who’d simply been trying to save Gille from his animalistic lusts.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rather than going to the dining hall, as usual, they were led outside to where a massive shuttle was grounded. Prime stood just outside, staring at Sarek with interest. He’d expected rage, loathing, rather than the clinical detachment she displayed now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look at you,” she said, smirking. “Animal.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek said nothing. What could he say? He doubted an apology would mean anything to her. She nodded in the direction of the open shuttle ramp.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“May I ask where we’re going?” Gille inquired.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, you may not,” Prime answered, shoving her roughly forward.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once they were buckled into their seats the ramp closed, and Prime had him secured to a seat in the cargo area. After that she took a turbo lift out. Sarek looked at the old castle they’d been housed in for who knows how long. He saw the narrow window of the room he’d just left, where the blood of his victims stained the floor. He hoped he’d never have to return. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock was eating steak and eggs for breakfast, and it baffled her. The last time they’d been on Sebenn he hadn’t displayed an appetite for meat. Now he couldn't seem to get enough of it. Michael used the medical tricorder in her supplies and scanned him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, your leptin levels are a little low. So is your iron.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock cut a piece of steak from the t-bone he was eating with some fried eggs. It was medium rare and he seemed to relish the taste. His response was a simple shrug.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what’s causing it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Perhaps Sitta will know,” he said. “I feel in good health.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She frowned at the results but it was Spock himself that worried her. He was holding something back, but she knew him well enough to know that he’d only fight her if she pressed, so she decided she’d say nothing else. For now. Though she sensed his concern, his discomfort, the imbalance was slight, so she put the tricorder back and  tucked into her own meal. They were still eating when Una came to sit with them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Something troubles you, Sir,” Spock noted. Una frowned at Spock’s choice of breakfast before nodding.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sitta and Linn are betrothed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, Commander. I’m sorry,” Michael said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not exactly shocking is it? I’ve been gone six years. Of course he’s moved on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That does not preclude pain from learning of his impending marriage,” said Spock. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Una gazed at the table, blinking back tears that threatened to fall. She was more emotional than Michael was used to seeing her. Perhaps this planet just made non natives emotional, Vulcan or not.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I mourned him, you know? I never really moved on. Then I came here to discover he’s alive, our child survived against all odds… And he’s in an arranged marriage.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Arranged?” Michael asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sedda Seh is the oldest settlement on Sebenn. It’s the wellspring of the Royal family and holds a lot of significance in Sebennian culture, planetwide. Linn and Sitta represent the opposing sides of their conflict. Sitta, the matriarchy, Linn, a man struggling for equality. They come together in a peaceful way, to be kind and loving to one another, and equal. It’s symbolic. Arranged by the queen herself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What does Linn want, now that you’ve returned?” Michael asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He wants out of the marriage. Sitta asked the queen for a different arrangement but she refused. There’s been a lot of hype around this upcoming wedding as symbolic of both sides  joining in peace.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock pushed his plate away, his hunger sated. “No one should be forced into a loveless marriage. It is a common occurrence on Vulcan. It almost happened to me. You could always challenge her for your mate. Kill her if need be.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Both Una and Michael looked at Spock with unabashed shock on their faces. Then Una began to laugh and punched Spock lightly on the arm. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re trying to improve your sense of humor, I see,” she said. “You really need to work on it. That was just awful.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But Michael knew Spock hadn’t been joking at all. She said nothing, keeping the truth to herself as she looked at Spock with a frown. She tried to reach out to him through their bond but he pulled away. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They stood from the table and began to stroll toward the tree edge, where Linn and Sitta supervised some children playing in the snow. A news drone hovered over the scene, broadcasting to global media.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s the deal with you two?” Una asked. “Now that you have all your memories back?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We have renewed our marriage bond,” Spock said proudly, lifting two fingers to Michael, who joined with him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to request a transfer to the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Enterprise</span>
  </em>
  <span>. We’re going to ask Captain Pike to marry us in a human ceremony.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I would love nothing more than to see that,” said Una. “And you eating meat, Spock?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That remains a mystery,” Spock said, but Michael could sense he at least had an idea what was happening to him. Before they could discuss it further, a snowball slapped Spock on the side of the head. He looked over to see Unnat staring at him with wide-eyed uncertainty.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Unnat!” Linn said, chastising him. “Mr. Spock is a guest.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This sort of blatant act of aggression simply cannot go unanswered,” Spock replied. He loosely packed a snowball and lightly chucked it at the child. It hit him on the chest, breaking apart on impact, causing him to fall into giggles right away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, if you think I’m going to let you attack my son without repercussion you’d best think again,” Una said, heading towards Unnat. “Shall we show him how to really do a snowball fight?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unnat nodded enthusiastically while Linn joined the two of them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Three to one isn’t fair,” said Michael, bending down with Spock to form loose snowballs that would fall apart easily and not do any harm upon impact. Soon they were throwing them back and forth. Before long, the other children joined in, picking sides until they were evenly matched.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Everything went well until one child hit Unnat in the face with a tightly packed snowball, causing his nose to bleed. The game ground to a halt, the good mood souring. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look at the half breed crying!” one girl with brown hair and spotting shouted. The other children burst into laughter, pointing. Shamed, Unnat immediately turned to Una, who picked him up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock’s reaction was visceral and ran deep. All of his happiness turned immediately to anger. He felt defensive, overly emotional, though his outward appearance showed little evidence of his inner turmoil.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Children,” Linn said calmly. “Gather around.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The kids now looked at one another, certain they were in trouble for having teased the teacher’s son, and reluctantly gathered together in front of him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If I were to hit you hard enough to make your nosebleed, how would you feel if I pointed you out and belittled you? What if everyone laughed at you?  Someone give me an answer.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They remained silent, staring at the ground.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When you say cruel things, and laugh at others,” Sitta said, “you hurt them even more. Laughing at someone's pain is cruel. Being cruel is bad behavior.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Calling someone an ugly name is also hurtful,” Una pointed out. “Raise your hand if you like being called names and laughed at.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Their hands remained down. The girl who started it all looked on the verge of tears.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, Unnat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He kept his face buried in Una’s neck. She patted his back, spoke soothing words, and made comforting sounds. Spock could tell the boy ate the attention up, glad to have a mother there to fawn over him, as all children his age would, but especially a cold who’d just gained his mother after a lifetime without her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t mean it,” she said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s very grown up of you, Hidda,” Linn said, though Michael could imagine he wasn’t very fond of her at the moment. “I think we’ve had enough fun for this morning. Everyone return home, dry off, and prepare to return to Learning Tree One in half an hour.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unnat continued to tightly hug Una, refusing to allow her to set him down until they reached a table and Sitta went to look at his nose, which was still pouring blood that had a kind of purple tint to it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, are you alright?” Michael asked, sensing him distance himself from her in their bond even further. “That must’ve been very upsetting. I remember how the other children taunted you. How cruel they were.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, but I am no longer a child.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It doesn’t mean you can’t empathize with Unnat’s situation.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Indeed, I do empathize. Perhaps too much.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made no effort to hide his frown from her as he watched Una carry her son away from the table, with Linn and Sitta leading the children back to the learning tree. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean?” Michael pressed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought I could retain better control on Sebenn than I did last time now that I have Sarek’s serum in my blood, but I’m not so certain. The protective aspects of his alleged cure might be only temporary. I feel my control slipping again. It doesn’t feel like the Blood Fever this time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How does it feel?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He regarded her with hooded eyes. She could feel his apprehension at sharing with her, that he might lose her if he was honest with her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, no secrets between us. You’ve been pulling away in our bond and I need you to stop it. We tell each other everything, both through our bond and verbally, and we agree to be there for one another.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he exhaled, releasing a puff of breath that momentarily obscured his face. She knew he had something difficult to tell her. Michael felt apprehension as she would if he’d just come from the doctor and was trying to find a gentle way to deliver a frightening diagnosis. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, please. If you know what’s wrong, tell me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I suspect that I am not slipping back into the Blood Fever at all, Michael. I fear I am regressing to what our people used to be. We weren’t just violent, we were crazed, as though trapped in a perpetual state of </span>
  <em>
    <span>plak tow</span>
  </em>
  <span>. We ate meat. We reveled in the slaughter of animals and would eat the meat raw, right off the animal as it lay dead on the ground. There were even those of us who would simply start eating the animal while alive, until it died of its injuries, basking in its screams of pain and terror.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My god,” Michael said, covering her mouth in disgust. She didn’t feel it toward Spock, but toward what Vulcans used to be, before embracing Surak’s teachings of logic and emotional control. “That explains your desire for rare steak.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What if the effects are permanent?” he asked. “What if, when I leave here, I cannot regain my logic?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You need to leave now,” Michael said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And be away from you on a planet still in so much turmoil? I refuse.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael shook her head, baffled by his reluctance to leave. “Spock, you could go mad here. Something about this planet affects Vulcans in a way that turns you feral. It wasn’t as bad last time but this time even Sarek’s cure isn’t helping.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It does help some, </span>
  <em>
    <span>t’nash-veh ashaya</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael felt a glow of warmth spread through her at Spock’s words. He’d called her ‘my love,’ and she reveled in the love he sent to her through their bond.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Du're t'nash-veh ashaya nuh'</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” she answered. You’re my love, too.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This evening, after dinner, I will take another hypo of Sarek’s serum. I’ve noticed it doesn’t cause nausea if I use it on a full stomach.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of vegetables. No more meat, Spock.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course, </span>
  <em>
    <span>ashaya</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They’d wandered close to a stand of trees with unoccupied guest quarters and storage supply vaults carved into them. Spock scooped her off her feet and she wrapped her legs around him. He pushed the door open to one tree. It was filled with crates of foods that would require refrigeration, so the heat had been left off in the room so nature could keep everything cold. The universal translator in her vision chip translated the written text for her. Most of it was meat, and a lot of it she remembered being on the list of meat that wouldn’t be safe for human, or Vulcan, consumption. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, perhaps we should return to our quarters for this,” Michael suggested. “I don’t think the citizens of Sedda Seh would appreciate us copulating on their food supplies.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock’s throaty laughter filled the room and shook his body beneath her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you saying they will not wish to eat our sex meat?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This time Michael laughed with him and didn’t object when he sat her on a crate and pulled her legs tighter around him. He was hard for her, and he let her know it by grinding himself against her just the way she liked him to. Rather than grating against her clit, Spock pressed against her entrance, pushing himself hard against her until her body gave to him, even though fully clothed. The pressure he put there was delicious. She gripped at his shoulders as he ground against her hard in a steady, slow rhythm. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, please,” she panted. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pushed her back, none too gently. Michael fell back onto her elbows and watched him as he pulled at her bottoms. At the moment she couldn’t be bothered with how rough he became. She wanted him and this is how she could have him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock yanked at her trousers until they were down around her ankles. He shrugged off his coat, letting it fall to the floor. His eyes stayed on her face as he slowly unfastened his trousers. Michael’s breathing grew heavy as he pitched them down and released his cock from its confines.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The thick, green shaft bobbed at her lewdly, dripping with precum as he took himself in hand. Michael reached out to touch him herself but was denied as he swatted her hand away. She pouted but acquiesced, contenting herself with watching Spock stroke himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Du aitlu nash veh?</span>
  </em>
  <span>” he asked, gruffly. He held the head of his cock at her entrance, slicking it through the wet cream of her folds.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ha…” she murmured, feeling herself ache him. Why was he teasing her? Why didn’t he just sink inside her and take her now? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock shivered again. She noticed the small army of goosebumps lining his skin as he used his other hand to shove his pants lower beneath the cleft of his rear.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thankfully he was content to leave her coat closed. He palmed her breasts over the material and watched as she arched into his touch. Even with the clothes muting his touch, Michael’s nipples still hardened in response to Spock’s groping. Heat blossomed across her chest and settled down between her legs. Her ass, however, was freezing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She began to move herself off of the crate when Spock’s other hand came to grip her hip, halting her progress. Michael glared from him to his hand and back again and said, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>N~tou veh</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” ‘I’m cold.’ </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock narrowed his eyes and tilted his head. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Du dungi-ri na’tor</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” ‘You won’t be for long.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael tried to move again and froze when he growled at her. Looking at him again, Spock’s face looked unrecognizable. His nostrils flared over the vicious snarl of his mouth as he chuffed at her. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Tor. Ri. Sadvun’tor, Mihil</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” ‘Do. Not. Move, Michael.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her sex liquidified at the gravelly sound of his voice while her mind was affronted. Was he growling? At her? Maybe it was his face, his posturing, or the fact that he told her not to, but Michael’s easygoing nature in their foreplay evaporated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her open palm struck his face with a ringing smack that had his head cocking to the side and her hand stinging in protest. She flinched back and held her hand to her chest. Even if she hadn’t, she didn’t think she could have stopped what happened next. The world spun as he shoved her down, flush across the crate by the shoulder. She gasped in surprise at the sudden movement and then again as the hand he had at her hip moved down to grip her thigh. </span>
</p><p><span>“Spock!” she snapped at him, writhing in his hands. “</span><em><span>Ra bogozh du tor?</span></em> <em><span>Ra svi’du?</span></em><span>” ‘What the hell are you doing? What’s gotten into you?’</span></p><p>
  <span>He didn’t answer her. She felt him pull her body towards him followed by the hot knob of his lok probbing her sex. She hissed at the cold air as she felt herself part around him. “Spock.” she huffed. “Spock? Ah!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock snapped his hips forward and sent his lok rushing inside her. Michael jerked off of the crate against his hand and wailed his name. Spock groaned above her and held her captive leg tighter. She shuddered into his touch and whimpered. It didn’t matter how many times he took her, she never quite adjusted. With his unique anatomy and strength, Michael often found herself dizzy. The fullness was he created was one thing but Spock made her feel possessed, consumed and beyond control of herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock…” she sighed, clawing at the crate’s surface. She felt his eyes combing over her body and him shifting above her. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Du aitlu veh, Mihil?</span>
  </em>
  <span>” he asked again. ‘Do you want me, Michael?’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her pussy spasmed as he tilted his hips and pumped one, deep stroke inside her. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Yes! Oh Spock, please!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” she sputtered. ‘Ha! Oh, Spock, sanoi.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And with that he relented and let his body ravage her. Michael panted at the air. Her bondmate held her captive against the crate and churned his cock back and forth within her. He hadn’t been this aggressive with her before. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>In this moment Spock felt raw, gritty with the need to have her. He was thrilled in his control of her body as much as he relished having her tight, soft wetness give way to the hard length of him. Her needy, pitiful moans pulled at his core until he could feel her shocked pleasure as his own. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>T’nash veh, Mihil. T’nash veh eh ri veh kitok. </span>
  </em>
  <span>( You’re mine, Michael. Mine and no one else’s)” he growled through gritted teeth. ‘You’re mine, Michael. Mine and no one else’s.’ “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Taran!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘Say it!’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock adjusted his hips and took a hold over her other leg. Spock held both legs out to the side, opening her sex and clit to the full brunt of thrusting. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Taran!</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael’s mouth silently screamed into the air as she felt herself clamp around him and implode. Spock pumped harder and leaned down towards her face. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Tar-tor, Mihil!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘Say it, Michael!’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>T’du! T’du…</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘Yours’ she keened, shaking her head as the onslaught continued. She couldn’t breathe. The strength of his thrusts and her orgasm was constricting her chest until a painful vice. She shut her eyes and craned her head back against the crate’s top as she fought to bring air into her quaking body.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock withdrew and pulled away from her. Michael found herself finally able to breath as cold air hit her drenched folds. She felt utterly wasted but Spock was far from done with her. Strong arm clamped around her and moved her to the floor. Even on his coat, Michael’s teeth chattered uncontrollably. She jerked upright, moving her back away from the icy touch of the offcast coat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock’s face went from mildly wild to absolutely feral. He caught her by the waist and flipped her over. Michael landed with an umph and felt her body being lifted until she was on her knees. She had just come to her forearms when Spock’s hands came around her hips and his lok plunged back inside her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael fisted the material of the jacket into her hands and yelped into the air. He was so deep like this. She dropped her head onto her forearm and wheezed at the air. Why did he feel so big this way? No matter how she tilted her hips, there seemed to be no way to evade the girth and reach of him. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Spock, sanoi…</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘Spock, please…’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pushed her forward and sent her crashing back against him. Michael swallowed as her ass was met with the hard expanse of his pelvis. “ </span>
  <em>
    <span>Mihil…</span>
  </em>
  <span>” he said in a slow, practiced voice. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Worla sah-tor s’nash veh. Du sah’tor, kum tor du’veh eh nem-tor kanok krus t’veh.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘Never run from me. If you run, I will catch you and make you take every inch of me.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael gulped at the air and wobbled up to her hands. “Spock, you don’t tell me what to do.” Her voice came out weak but her tone was firm. Still having him wedged within her, Michael thought her effort admirable.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock’s face darkened above her. He lowered himself until she was caged beneath him. Michael started to wriggle herself free and he sent his hips forward against hers. She cried out in seething bliss as Spock pounded out a punishing rhythm. No gentle mind meld was withcoming, on the relentless crush of his body, pushing and pulling between her legs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>So much of him, every bit of him came at her until he was buried to the hilt. Only then did Spock withdraw and push forward again, over and over until she was moaning incoherently underneath him. Her shirt had ridden up from all the jostling, exposing her breasts to the cool air and soft lining of his coat. With each stroke, Spock bounced them forward, rubbing her nipples against the material until she felt faint.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bringing his body closer to hers, Spock brought his thighs directly behind hers and his arms against her shoulders. Completely caged, Michael had no choice in where or how to move. She arched her back in an effort to contain herself but buckled beneath the pressure Spock’s lok stoked inside her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She went stiff beneath him and came so hard her vision spotted. Spock hissed above her, gritting his teeth as her pussy milked at him. Michael slumped to the floor as the strength of her climax began to wan. As soon as she relaxed enough to let him move, Spock was rocking against her once again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael’s eyes teared as her overly sensitized body sparked with pleasure once more. God, she didn’t think she could do this again, not with Spock driving her so hard and riding her so roughly. She felt more like his bitch than his bride,  mounted and subdued by her brooding mate with one orgasm after another. All of this and he had yet to come himself. Michael began to fight in earnest. The pleasure was immense and indescribably good but Spock was beginning to worry her. If she could just manage to get on top, take control and slow the tempo-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Ri!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘No!’ Spock growled and barred her slight body against his chest. “ </span>
  <em>
    <span>Nekhau!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” he roared down at her. ‘Submit!’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The hair running down his abdomen tickled her back as he jabbed three sharp thrusts between them. Michael’s knees splayed and faltered as pleasure threatened to sweep her again. She twisted in his grip and mewed into the air. Too much.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Ri kroi abi’ t’lok thezeh-tor du veh.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” he panted against her ear. ‘I will not cease until my cock is dripping with you.’ </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He adjusted his arms to better pin her and Michael saw an opening. As soon as she could, Michael turned her face and bit as hard as she could.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock inhaled sharply. Half a second later he was tightening his grip around her and coming inside her. They moaned in tandem, Michael from the heat of his release and Spock from the relief of it. She shut her eyes as she felt his lok twitch and jerk with its pulsing inside her. What was this? That didn’t feel like making love. She felt like...she had been bred, like Spock’s reaction to this planet was driving him into that weird subspace of </span>
  <em>
    <span>plak-tow</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock withdrew himself and Michael swallowed as she felt a hot, wet trickle run down her thigh. They were a mess. She assumed that he was moving to clean them up with she felt his finger press against the tight bud of her rear. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Fear chilled her as the room had not. Michael turned her head with wide eyes and whined as he plunged the digit inside her, pumping it in and out. Michael’s sex clenched hollowly as heat curled inside her once more. And yet her nerves would not let her relax into him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She had told him how she worried about anal. She feared it would hurt, that he would be too big or be too rough. By this time Spock had withdrawn the finger and was lining up the thick head of his cock to press against and into her when she screeched. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Spock, ri! Ri, Spock! Sanoi! Kwes nash veh. Kwes s’du!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘Spock, no! No, Spock! Please! I’m afraid. You’re scaring me!’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock paused at her frantic pleading and immediately relented as he felt her fear prickling at his skin. He looked at her agogged, stunned with himself and the scene. He twisted her around and hugged her tightly. “Forgive please. I am so sorry Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael felt numb as the fear faded. Spock seemed to have come back to his senses, but what had just happened between them had been something wild. Something...ugly. She hurried to pull her trousers on and fix her clothes. All the while Spock watched her with a growing sense of dread. The weight of his actions began to hit home. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don't touch me. Please.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She knew it was the wrong thing to say when she felt his pain but she just couldn't. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did I just rape you, Michael?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His question halted her as she started for the exit. She stood there, staring at the door, his guilt and pain a raw wound that bled into both of them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course you didn't!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You feared me. At the end I felt your fear. It's what stopped me. It...it woke me up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>How could she walk away from him? He was her soul mate. He faced something he didn't understand. Something that could change him forever. She was his anchor in this stormy sea. If she didn't hold him down, he'd drift, lost, forever.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You weren't yourself, </span>
  <em>
    <span>t’nash-veh ashaya</span>
  </em>
  <span>. You were like an…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Animal,” he supplied. “I could have hurt you. I would rather die.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You won't hurt me. I trust you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He turned from her as tears of shame spilled from his eyes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come to me.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I cannot.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She decided to reach out to him in his tongue. To speak in his first language.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Sa-telsu, ri tor da-tor ish-veh limuk s' ish-veh ko-telsu.</span>
  </em>
  <span>” ‘Husband, do not turn your face from your wife.’ </span>
</p><p>
  <span>With a wet sigh Spock turned to Michael. She took his hand and placed it on her face. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Gla-tor k'fai t'nash-veh bezhun</span>
  </em>
  <span>.” ‘See yourself through my eyes.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He touched his mind to hers. Saw their encounter through her eyes, along with everything she felt. When he finished he released her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You didn't rape me. But I fear for your safety. I have to keep you safe. Spock, you must leave this planet before it destroys you.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And Sarek? If something happened to him because you were busy caring for me…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love Sarek. I'm angry with him for the years he's cost us, the children we could already have, but I still love him. That being said, you're still my priority, </span>
  <em>
    <span>t’nash veh ashaya</span>
  </em>
  <span>. From the moment I remembered that has been so. It's never going to change.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock allowed Michael to take his hand and lead him back to the community. She needed to inform Una of what was going on, and their plans to leave. </span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Crash Landing</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In which Sarek breaks free. Spock goes off the deep end.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><b>Sarek</b> </p><p>The privilege of watching the ground as they flew over the planet was denied to Sarek as the shuttle took him to a new safehouse. Not that the massive castle they'd just left could be thought of as a house by even grand standards. Would they lodge somewhere a bit more humble? Or would they find another ugly, ostentatious lair to skulk in next? </p><p>Why he should even care was lost in Sarek. He felt increasingly agitated, and the feeling only worsened after a woman sent another puff of whatever substance they were using on him into his face. Restlessness drove him to tap his feet in a pattern that earned him a glare from his captors. It occurred to Sarek that perhaps he should antagonize him. The thought that he could push them to use lethal force deeply appealed to him. </p><p>Those thoughts were shunted to the back of his mind as Prime entered from the turbolift that gave access to the cargo bay, the deck above, and the flight control deck. She had changed from her winter clothes to tan clothes suited to a hot climate. Judging by the deep tread on her boots, they would likely travel to a place with sand. </p><p>The thought of a hot environment sent blood rushing into Sarek’s loins. He moaned lightly at both the thought and the feeling it inspired. Prime nodded to his lap. </p><p>“Is your inner beast waking up, male?” </p><p>Prime straddled Sarek's lap until the warmth of her body radiated into his. She crossed her arms. It occurred to Sarek how amusing it would be to open his legs and let her drop, landing on her ass. He let them fall open but Prime reacted with speed Sarek didn't anticipate, and strength he didn't expect. She squeezed her thighs, keeping herself on his lap, and smirked again.  </p><p>Sarek's erection became tighter in response to her display of instinct and physical prowess. He struggled to lean forward, desperate to sink his teeth into the small mound of flesh of her breast. The shirt she wore was sleeveless and thin. </p><p>“Do you know what I like about Sebennian women?”</p><p>“Do tell?”</p><p>“You don't restrain your breasts with a brassier. Humans have a vulgar name for them. Tits. You let your tits go unfettered, as nature intended.”</p><p>Prime arched a brow. “You're quite different from when we first met,” Prime said. “You're much more emotional. Violent. What changed?”</p><p>“The scientist in me speculates the Sebennian people must produce pheromones that break down my emotional control, turning me primal. There’s also the substance you’re dosing me with. The man in me simply doesn't care. All I want to do is enjoy the moment.”</p><p>“If I were to give you someone to kill, a target, would you do it? Strictly for the pleasure of it?”</p><p>“I do not think I am that far gone.”</p><p>“You murdered two of my women, so I’m sure you will be again, in time,” Prime said. “When you are, I'm going to give you plenty of targets to kill. You'll have a nice bloodbath to enjoy.”</p><p>Sarek lifted his hips, pressing his erection against Prime. She made no move to stop him so he pressed harder, and growled his pleasure when she ground against him. </p><p>“You realize I could have you put to death for such a blatant act of--”</p><p>Her words were cut off when he lunged forward with enough force to grab her shirt in his teeth. He yanked her forward as she helped in surprise.</p><p>“Damn you! Let go!”</p><p>He pulled again, tearing the material. With her face close enough, he was able to shove his tongue into her mouth. She stiffened in shock for a moment before pulling away. </p><p>“You dare!”</p><p>He smirked at her. “I am quite a vigorous lover. Loose me and I will prove it.”</p><p>“I have no need of--ahh!”</p><p>He'd thrust his hips up once more, hitting a sensitive place that forced a gasp from her. His nose picked up on her arousal. Putting weight on his cuffed hands, and positioning his feet apart, he thrust up again. Prime slapped Sarek across the face.</p><p>“Yes,” he hissed, further aroused by her small act of violence. “Savage me.”</p><p>The part of Sarek's mind that told him he was losing control again quieted when he bumped his pelvis against Prime and she moaned.</p><p>“Unfasten my trousers. The men in my family tend to be well endowed. I am no exception. Take pleasure on me.”</p><p>Prime looked to make certain no one had followed her before she undid his trousers, and then worked hers out of the way. She gripped his cock and tugged hard on it. Violently so. Sarek laughed at the surprise on her face.</p><p>“You don't possess the strength necessary to harm me, Sebennian whore.”</p><p>She moved to slap Sarek again but he thrust once more, this time pushing partly into her. She yelped in pained surprise. </p><p>“Aren't you a tight one?” Sarek queried, thrusting again, pushing through and into her. </p><p>They moaned in unison as she pressed against him and began rolling her hips. She didn't shy away from Sarek's mouth, or his tongue, as he leaned forward and sought her out. </p><p>Her pain had been arousing, just as Gille's had, and he needed more. Acting purely on instinct, Sarek bit down, his teeth slicing cleanly through her tongue. Immediately, Prime screamed, flailed uselessly against his face and head as he ripped her tongue from her mouth and ejaculated into her at the same time. She fell back, blood pouring from her mouth as she screamed in pain and terror. She watched in horror as Sarek chewed part of her tongue and swallowed, while the bulk of it fell to the floor in a bloody pulp. He grinned down at her. </p><p>The turbolift doors opened and five guards spilled out, armed. Two pulled Prime to her feet and hurried her to the lift while the other three turned to him with clubs and began beating him. They weren't strong enough to hurt him, only stoke the fires of rage inside him. He strained at the steel cuffs that bound him to the chair. With a cry of rage, Sarek pulled himself free from his restraints. </p><p>The women backed away, their faces a perfect mask of shock and fear as Sarek towered over them. Their clubs went forgotten as he grinned down at them, their prime’s blood dripping from his mouth as he fastened his trousers.</p><p>“Ladies,” he said with a demented grin, unaware he looked every bit the savage he had become, “whatever you’ve given me has robbed me of my logic and awakened my bloodlust. Before I kill you I must say...thank you.”</p><p>The women had sense enough to at least try to run. Sarek assumed they had seen, or had been told, of the carnage he’d inflicted upon the guards at their last hideout, and didn’t wish to risk the same happening to them. One woman grabbed a pistol from a wall bracket and turned to open fire on him, but he was faster, and stronger, and managed to grab her wrist before she could take aim. When he snapped her wrist she let loose a scream that any civilized person would find ugly, like an animal in the moment before death. The next thing he snapped was her neck.</p><p>Armed with the gun, Sarek used his heightened senses to listen for, and even sniff out, his quarry. They were gone. He heard the hollow bang of their footsteps as they retreated up the emergency ladders beside the turbolifts. When all of his strength failed to pry open the hatch, he turned his attention elsewhere. </p><p>Shouting. Screaming. Prime’s cries of pain. The sharp smell of fear mixed with the coppery scent of fresh blood. It all trickled down to him from the vent system. He studied the layout of the vessel. It was neither more nor less advanced than any Vulcan or Earth shuttle. Species tended to develop their technology in a similar manner, so Sarek posited the ship would have roughly the same build as any ship he’d ever studied. </p><p>He walked over to a panel beside the joint in the cargo ramp and studied the readouts. Of course he’d be locked out of the computer, and he didn’t have time to hack it, but he did have time to do some clever rewiring. After he finished he approached, and destroyed, the panel beside the emergency exit and was finally able to pry the doors open. He’d just  gained access when the women above took shots at him. </p><p>His mood turned angry. Sarek backed away from the entrance until he heard the click of their spent weapons. Then he made his move, hurrying up the ladder and aiming at the guards firing at him. He wasted no ammunition when he made three perfect headshots. Moving quickly and efficiently, Sarek reloaded their weapons and took their spare ammunition before opening fire on the guards in the corridor. He decided he liked projectile weapons. There was a certain noisy savagery to them, and the slaughter made him ejaculate into his trousers. He even enjoyed the sticky heat of it against his skin. </p><p>Uncertain of the number of women left aboard the ship, Sarek hurried to the next emergency hatch. He’d be a fool to get himself trapped in the turbolift. He would’ve preferred the satisfaction of hunting and slaughtering the last of his captors, but that would have to wait. He made his way to what passed for a bridge. There was a four person cockpit, occupied by four women. He could hear their frantically beating hearts when he arrived and began shooting up the small panel beside the door and easily wired them open. He was prepared to shoot them once he gained entry, but they were gone, having escaped through another exit.</p><p>After sealing the doors shut on the inside, Sarek took the controls. He’d flown many vessels, and this one was no more difficult to figure out than any other. </p><p>“I’ve never intentionally crashed a vessel before.”</p><p>He called up the life signs of those on board. Two were in the med bay. Prime and her doctor, no doubt. There were seven more besides them. He was on board with nine captors, and Gille.</p><p>
  <em> Send a distress signal. Notify whatever ship was in orbit, likely the Enterprise, of your location. Submit yourself for medical treatment.  </em>
</p><p>Every thought was logical. He could finally escape these women and find his way back to his old self. He could finally receive the help he needed. </p><p>“Where’s the fun in that?”</p><p>Sarek kept an eye on the life signs while he hacked into the onboard systems. There was nothing about their plans for him on the ship computer. A shame. </p><p>
  <em> Sarek, it is I, Amanda. Parted from you and never parted. Never and always touching and touched… </em>
</p><p>Rage suddenly overcame Sarek. How dare she speak those words to him? She, who would shame him with divorce? She, who would abandon him? Their bond was tenuous but easy for a man of his skill to latch onto. He gripped her mind as best he could and sent every bit of his anger, hurt, and  humiliation to her. He let his bloodlust lead him to grip her mind as best he could. Were they fully bonded he could kill her, but the bond was only strong enough to cause her pain. </p><p>Sarek expected her to retreat, but Amanda was strong, with an ordered mind much more calm and logical than any other human, or what he now possessed. </p><p>
  <em> I know what you’re doing, Sarek. Stop it. Send Captain Pike your coordinates. We’ll beam you aboard. You’ll get the medical help you need. </em>
</p><p>He grabbed at his head, rage burning him like fire. </p><p>
  <em> Fuck you, Amanda! You are no longer mine, and I am no longer yours. I will get free of these wretched women and I’ll come for you. I’ll kill you slowly. I’ll savor your agony.  </em>
</p><p>After he secured his restraints, Sarek took the controls and shut down his bond with Amanda. He wouldn’t allow her to distract him from his current mission. </p><p>“Let’s see what it’s like to crash.”</p><p>The landscape below was no longer winter. Instead there was an expanse of sandy beach that lined an ocean of sparkling blue water. Sarek pushed the controls forward, sending the ship toward the ground. When it hit the sand he could hear the terrible wrenching of metal as it was torn apart. Something struck his head but he wasn’t aware of it knocking him unconscious. <br/><br/></p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p>The scent of her was still strong in Spock’s nose. She could tell by the lust she felt in their bond.</p><p>After beaming aboard he followed Michael to his quarters. She knew his thoughts. Did the crew they passed scent his mate? Did it arouse them as it did him? None of them reacted as he’d expected. Humans and their weak sense of smell...he was grateful he’d inherited many Vulcan strengths, but little human weaknesses. </p><p>Michael allowed him to take her in the shower before washing him clean. It was only her constant, low-level fear of him, that he’d lose control and harm her, that helped him keep control, but she wondered how long even that would last before fear became an aphrodisiac for him. As soon as they were clean and dressed, Michael asked Pike and Amanda to meet them in sickbay. </p><p>“I honestly don’t know what I’m looking at here,” Dr. Phil Boyce said. </p><p>The older man swiped an errant strand of blond hair from his forehead and stared at the readouts on the monitor above the biobed. He had striking blue eyes. Michael sensed Spock’s fear that she might find the older man attractive.</p><p>“There’s a very slight chemical imbalance. Looks tied to the amygdala, which is a full one percent larger than it was last month when I completed your annual physical. Your blood is saturated with Sebennian pheromones. I’m not an expert on their biology, but after our last run in with them I studied what I could. They produce almost four times what humans, or Vulcans, produce.”</p><p>“Sarek told me it’s part of their mating cycle,” Pike said. “But it’s not as intense now as it was the last time we were here.”</p><p>“Their mating season doesn’t begin, in earnest, for another sixteen days,” Michael said.</p><p>Boyce nodded. “From what I can tell, Commander, Vulcans are highly susceptible to this cycle. It’s attacking his ability to control emotions. If Spock wasn’t half human, he’d be stark raving mad by now. But it’s more than that. There’s a chemical I’ve never seen in his blood.”</p><p>“An inoculation he received on the planet,” Michael explained. “It doesn’t seem to be helping.”</p><p>“How do you think we should proceed?” Amanda asked. </p><p>“I need a Vulcan doctor on board to consult—”</p><p>Just the mention of bringing in a Vulcan made Spock bare his teeth. Michael sensed intense fear rolling off him as he panicked. She picked up flashes from their childhood. The judgment, the scorn hidden behind blank faces but plain to see in their eyes. Especially from his own father. He feared, Michael realized, having another Vulcan there to judge him. </p><p>“I will resolve this myself.”</p><p>“Son, work with Dr. Boyce,” Amanda said. “He only wants to help. You don’t have to see a Vulcan healer, but let him treat you.”</p><p>Spock reacted with rage. Michael could feel a lifetime of resentment bubble up. She expected an angry outburst, but as quickly as the anger arose it vanished, replaced with understanding. His mother loved him, and meant well, which he understood. Michael’s body sagged in relief. </p><p>“I love you, Mom,” he said. “But I need to be alone.”</p><p>Michael didn’t need a bond with Amanda to see her surprise at his admission of love. Or his use of the word mom. </p><p>“And here’s sickbay.”</p><p>Una entered the room with Unnat and Linn, took a look at their group, and Spock sitting on the biobed, and stopped short. </p><p>“We’ll look around later, when Dr. Boyce doesn’t have a patient. Let’s go to engineering. You’ll love it there.”</p><p>“Bye, Mr. Spock,” Unnat said, waving. “I hope you get well soon.”</p><p>Spock waved and smiled openly at Unnat. “I feel better already just for seeing you.” </p><p>Unnat smiled back and followed his parents from the room, oblivious to the look of concern on Una’s face. Michael shared in that concern. </p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Sarek </b>
</p><p>The pain was intense. It should have been a major stressor, even for a man as disciplined as he, but Sarek relished it. The ache that reached down to his bones brought clarity to his mind, rather than clouding it. </p><p>Each breath Sarek took was more acrid smoke than oxygen. It would’ve been fatal to a lesser man, but Sarek held his breath, even though the edges of his vision began to gray, and darken. His eyes burned too badly to properly see, allowing him a blurred glance at his immediate surroundings, and tears streamed from them as he released his restraints. A gust of warm air blew directly in his face, telling him the viewport had shattered on impact. He wondered if the ship had rolled, and smiled in amusement at the thought. </p><p>Once free of the belts that had anchored him to his seat, Sarek pushed himself forward, only to collapse when he realized his left leg was unresponsive to his brain’s command to walk. He settled on lying face first on the ruined deck plating and pulled himself forward on his forearms. The smoke began to clear, but his burning eyes couldn’t give him a clear picture of the world around him. </p><p>Fresh air filled Sarek’s nose. He sucked down deep breaths of it, realizing all he could smell was the smoke, and the stench of burning flesh. He swiped at his eyes, unable to clear them, and settled for sniffing his way forward. His hands encountered a white box, and he gripped it. His blurry vision allowed him to make out what looked like a scalpel painted on it. After prying it open he fondled each object inside until he found a small bottle. He opened it and sniffed. Plain water. To make sure, he tasted it. It was water. He immediately rinsed his eyes, flushing them of chemicals until the bottle emptied. Though his vision remained fuzzy, he could see well enough to make out the wreckage he’d awakened in. </p><p>The ship was partially submerged in the ocean. He looked down to see if he jumped, he’d land in waist-deep water. there was very little left of the cockpit. The roof had been ripped away. Everywhere he looked there were exposed wires and piping, and black smoke billowing into the air. </p><p>The water was cold and made Sarek gasp when he landed, but it also helped clear his vision a bit more. He suspected a mild concussion. His green blood poured down the side of his face and saturated his robe, which he tore off. Pain nearly stole his breath as he pulled himself onto the beach and assessed his leg. A jagged piece of metal protruded from it. He wanted to pull it free, but that would be foolish. He’d need something to repair the flesh if he hoped to avoid bleeding to death on the beach of a planet full of hostile women who wanted to either fuck him, or kill him.</p><p>Though it took a lot of effort, Sarek forced himself to hobble, leaning on the wreckage for support, toward the rear of the ship. What had been the cargo bay was gone, flattened in the impact, but an exposed emergency hatch showed a ladder that would lead to the medbay. Once up and inside, he saw a gouge in the sand nearly a kilometer long, with pieces of the ship littering the expanse like the guts of an animal that had been dragged to its death on pavement. He felt the warmth of pride when he realized there were bodies, broken and bloody, mixed among the metal. </p><p>The climb was long and hard, the interior twisted and smoky, but Sarek reached the medbay. He expected Prime to be a smear on the wall, or lifeless on the floor, but there was no one inside. Perhaps she was among the dead on the beach. Regardless of what happened to her, Sarek set to work on healing his leg. </p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Spock </b>
</p><p>Una was a beautiful woman. </p><p>Spock moved down the corridor, his steps perfectly silent, with his first officer walking ahead, oblivious to his presence. The need to pursue something was too powerful to ignore, so he’d simply walked out of his quarters, hoping to catch Michael’s scent and hunt her down. She would allow him to fuck her. She always wanted him as much as he wanted her. </p><p>Rather than pick up on Michael, he’d picked up on Una. He had followed her to her quarters, watched her drop her lover and child off before leaving again, before he realized what he was doing. She was not his bonded. He shouldn’t indulge in such a game, but he couldn’t stop himself once he’d started. </p><p>She walked with purpose. She always had. Una was confident in everything she attempted and Spock found that very attractive. He’d been fascinated by how logical, controlled, and proficient she was in everything she did. Failure wasn’t a word in her vocabulary. It didn’t even occur to her that she couldn’t succeed because she would attack whatever she attempted until she conquered it. </p><p>Conquered…</p><p>She would be quite a female to dominate. Did Linn appreciate the quality of the woman he had? </p><p>He peered around the bend of the corridor and saw her standing at the entrance to a turbolift, arms crossed. </p><p>“Come on, Spock. The jig is up. You’ve been following me since I left my quarters.”</p><p>He marched toward her, impressed she’d been onto him the whole time. She stepped into the lift and he followed. </p><p>“So? What was that about?”</p><p>“I’ll never forget my first day aboard the ship. I’ll never forget how the light reflected from your hair, or your keen blue eyes. You were the second most beautiful woman I’d ever seen, Michael being the first. It took days for me to realize—”</p><p>“You had a crush on me?” Una said, smiling. “It lasted three weeks. I was rather pleased with myself.”</p><p>“You understood me in ways few others ever could. Computer, halt turbolift.”</p><p>Una heaved a sigh. “Spock, as much as I’d like to play a game of Q&amp;A, I really don’t have time. Plus, I’ve never been fond of nostalgia. Computer, resume—”</p><p>Spock moved with lightning speed, shoving her against the lift wall and putting her hands over her head, where he pinned her. </p><p>“I wanted you,” Spock said. “I indulged in the most delicious fantasies of us back in this very lift. We didn’t waste our time talking in those fantasies. No...we put our time to very good use.”</p><p>“You’re using contractions, smiling in public, and undoubtedly about to commit a court martial level offense against a superior officer, and infidelity. I’d say you aren’t thinking clearly, Spock.”</p><p>God, she smelled good. She smelled like anger, and her mind felt like the rumble of a thunderstorm, the loud, ear splitting crack of thunder that followed close lightening. It aroused lust. Whether it would be sexual, or bloodlust, Spock didn’t care. </p><p>He lifted her easily into the air and forced himself against her center where he ground his pelvis against hers. His lips latched onto her neck where he moaned. </p><p>“Spock, if you put me down now, and report to sickbay, I’ll let you out of this without a permanent stain on your record. If you don't, it’s a write up.”</p><p>Spock began to laugh, keeping her pinned to the wall. “Oooooh. A write up. How frightening.”</p><p>“It’ll be a strongly worded write up.”</p><p>He laughed again, let go of her hands so he could grip her breasts, when suddenly he felt immense pain on the top of his head. Spock staggered back, surprised, and shook his head. To her credit, Una landed on her feet, but she eyed a compartment in the wall  that he knew held a phaser. </p><p>“Why can’t women just cooperate? Why must you always put up a fight?” Spock cocked his head to the side. “Wait. Why am I complaining? Fight me.”</p><p>She pulled the compartment door open but Spock gripped her wrist and slung her to the other wall. He was on her in seconds, pinning her against it, this time with her facing the wall. He moved to unfasten her trousers only to feel searing pain on his left shin as Una scraped the heel of her boot down his flesh. He cried out, staggered back, only to receive a series of blows to the face and neck. </p><p>“Computer, resume turbolift! Sickbay!” Una shouted. The lift began to move. </p><p>Sock growled like an animal. “I just wanted to have some fun, but now I’m pissed!”</p><p>“Spock, whatever’s going on, it’s changed you. Listen to what you’re saying! Think about Michael!”</p><p>The mention of his bondmate’s name gave him pause, but only for a moment. Rage coursed through him like a raging flood  and he attacked, holding nothing back. Una was forced to bob and weave, and scramble to avoid him. One solid hit could end her. </p><p>The doors opened, and Una stumbled back. If he couldn’t fuck her, he’d kill her. </p><p>“Una, get down!”</p><p>Una fell to the ground. Spock had just enough time to look up at Michael before the phaser blast took him down. </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. The Hunt Begins</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In which Sarek and Spock go on a hunt.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I’m posting this update. Not sure when I’ll post again. I hope y’all find this enjoyable!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>
<p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Someone was close. He could sense them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarek moved his leg and flexed the muscle. He had to hand it to the Sebennians. They had advanced technology, but their love of nature, and healing, had given them medical tech that was easily a hundred years beyond anything the Federation currently had. Perhaps he could get the plans for this tissue regenerator and the osteostapler and take it back to Vulcan, Prime Directive be damned. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>As though a creature like you would ever be allowed to return to proper society after your mad behavior here</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarek left the medbay and gathered a few of the projectile weapons he’d used, so satisfyingly, to slaughter his captors. He needed food, since this particular ship was designed more for battle than luxury. Whatever replicator systems they may have had on board were, like most everything else, destroyed in the crash. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d always condescended to sects that had forsaken mainstream Vulcan society to indulge in emotions. They lived out in the wilderness in caves and huts, indulging in carnal pleasures, crying, laughter, anger, and any other feeling one could experience. All of it was without shame. Now he realized they were onto something. They were wild and enjoyed life to the fullest. He would return to Vulcan so he could be with them. Perhaps he could take a new wife, a full-blood Vulcaness, or maybe he’d take Gille back with him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Gille…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarek began to harden just thinking of her. He remembered how she felt beneath him, how tight she’d been around his cock, how she’d moved her body in synch with his. The smell of her, the feel of her, the taste of her. A light, breathy moan escaped Sarek, and he was about to give in to the moment when he heard voices.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“...here somewhere.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Unless he fled.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Gille and Prime. How odd they’d be together without Prime shouting commands at Gille, or taking her anger out on her. She’d had time to get her tongue regenerated. Good. Perhaps he’d bite it off again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He heard Prime speak next. “We should get to the compound, Prime.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarek cocked his head to the side. Prime? Why had Prime given that title to Gille?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The ruse is up, Tilla,” Gille said. “We’ve gotten the information we need. The Vulcans are exceptionally susceptible to the pheromones, just as we suspected. It’s time to capture our little pointed-eared monster and get him back under control. To do that, we’ll need to get him back to the compound.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarek couldn’t stop his lips from stretching into a smile. They wanted to capture him, did they? That would make for enjoying sport, indeed. He moved without sound, heading down the access ladder to the ground where the ship had been ripped open in the crash. He slinked around upturned seats and cargo crates until he was behind them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“God, this heat,” Tilla said. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarek crept closer still, until he was barely a meter away from them. It gave him a feeling of power, being this close to his prey without them realizing he was there. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s one of the many reasons we need to get him to the compound,” Gille answered. “We’re not very good in the heat, but he is. His people thrive in this kind of element.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And if he escapes again?” Tilla asked. He realized she spoke funny, as though her tongue were extremely sore.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’ve got thirty allies there. He won’t escape again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Indeed we do.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tilla and Gille spun around, weapons drawn, but he knocked them from their hands. He expected them to fight, but instead they both took off, heading out of the ruins of the shuttle and into the bright sunlight. He hesitated, watched them run. He’d let them lead him back to their compound. He’d have thirty more animals to slaughter. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was easy to hear them panting. They crashed through the dense foliage without making a single effort to be quiet, which made it easy for him to follow. To their credit they were quite nimble, which made the chase take effort. His leg, though stitched nicely together, was weaker than normal. It would take time before he recovered full strength.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So, Gille was the real Prime of this group. She’d done more than an adequate job of convincing him she was a victim of the Matriarchy, as he was. He liked her deviousness. He liked that she was such a skilled liar. Perhaps he would spare her. Perhaps they could invade the Enterprise and slaughter the crew together before he took her back to Vulcan. He liked the idea of watching her suffer the heat. Even his wife Amanda, after decades on his home world, still struggled with the heat.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s relentless,” Tilla said. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Ah, fear. She was terribly afraid of him. Not only could he hear it in her voice, but he could smell it in the air that trailed behind her. Gille was not afraid. Not as much as she should have been, at any rate. They ran for miles, never stopping, their desire to find refuge driving them on since he made no efforts to conceal his pursuit. He crashed noisily ahead, until his leg screamed at him to slow. He wasn’t as young as he used to be, after all. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They crashed ahead and into a clearing with a waterfall, and Sarek fell back to watch them. Tilla approached a panel concealed in the foliage and tapped something in. Gille waited, listening for him, while Tilla fidgeted. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We know you’re there, Sarek!” Gille said. “We have backup coming. If they find us dead they have orders to shoot you on sight.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We overdosed him on the compound,” Tilla said. She thought she whispered but Sarek still heard. “Do you think the real Prime has gotten to the other Vulcan?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’ll discuss it later.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He hung back, camouflaging himself in the bushes that surrounded a tall tree. His leg was throbbing in time with his pulse, and he remembered he’d set the equipment to stitch but not disinfect. Could he get an infection? How had he not considered that?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Logic has abandoned you. You’re nothing more than an animal now...</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A shuttle came and hovered a few feet off the ground while a ramp extended. Gille sent Tilla in first, before she turned to stare in his general direction. She couldn’t pick him out of the greenery. That was interesting. She hurried inside as the ramp retracted, the doors shut, and the shuttle lifted into the air. The casually drifted away, remaining in his line of sight. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Did they want him to follow?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sarek emerged from the trees. Perhaps they would shoot him down now. He didn’t care. Right now he had other needs to meet. After relieving himself, he approached the pond the waterfall drained into. Perhaps waterfall was a bit grandiose a term. It was a trickle of fresh water, and the pond was muddy around the edges. The foliage, he noticed, was dry, brittle, as though the area hadn’t seen rain in quite some time. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He’d remembered to bring a Sebennian tricorder. He used it now to detect the water was free of parasites. He tasted it, gulping down handfuls to sate his thirst. After that, he removed his clothes and began swimming. He had a need to clean himself and his clothing. Why, he had no idea. Perhaps in case an animal caught his scent.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>You’re the only animal here.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Thirst quenched, clothes hung out on rocks to dry, Sarek emerged naked from the water and re-entered the forest. It was time to hunt for food.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <strike>
    <br/>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </strike>
</p>
<p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Michael received the summons to return to the planet’s surface, she didn’t expect to meet up with the queen herself. She stood at the treeline of Seddah-Seh, waiting patiently for Michael’s arrival. To her immense surprise, Oppa was with her. He yelled in delight as he ran and played in the snow with a small boy who had purple hair and spotting. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You summoned me, Your Majesty?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Marre bowed her head and introduced her to a handsome man who waited with her. He had very short, almond colored hair cut in a militaristic style. He bowed his head in her direction, and Michael returned it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Michael, this is Medde. Medde, Michael Burnham of the Federation.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I remember you being mentioned in Number One’s debrief,” Michael said. “You had been married to Hirra Hei.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes. I killed her, here at Sedda Seh.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Not a hint of remorse. If he could kill her again, he probably would. Not that she didn’t understand. She’d heard of the abuse Una had personally witnessed. But why was he here now? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Unnad, Tirra,” Medde said. The little boy stopped in his pursuit of the girl and they both turned to him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, Papa?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Stay inside the shelter of the trees. You don’t know where the borders are, you could fall and we may never see you again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Their eyes widened as they looked at the white landscape beyond the tree line. Medde wasn’t wrong. They could fall to their deaths. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We won’t leave the trees, Papa,” Tirra said. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Twins?” Michael asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. Unnad is my son. I had to initially switch him out with Tirra and present her as Hirra’s child, to avoid execution.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s Tirra! Una told me about that. May I ask why you kept her?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Her father was killed in the war only a few months after Hirra’s reign of terror ended. I adopted her.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael followed Sitta and Medde into the clinic where they took seats in the lunch room. A few nurses nodded as they headed out. Sitta took the time to replicate a few mugs of tea before sitting down. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So. Why did you ask for me? Is there news regarding Sarek?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes. You should tell her, Medde.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The Matriarchy has taken him to their stronghold in Avvidi. It’s symbolic because that is the location of the oldest temple on Sebenn. It’s where the first queen was anointed, and to have a man defeated, killed, there would bolster the Matriarchy. They intend to sacrifice him in ritual combat, but we’re not certain who his opponent is.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <b>...</b>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Spock was asleep. The biobed gave read-outs on his vitals, showing how profoundly Sebennian pheromones had affected him. Right now he looked so peaceful. He was sedated, his countenance serene, free of the conflict that had been on his face when she and Una had picked him up and carried him into sickbay. Now she stood beside Amanda, who looked down at him with eyes full of worry. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mother?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Without looking away from Spock, Amanda pulled Michael close. “Sarek is suffering. I know you may not care right now, considering all he’s done--”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I care. Of course I care. What do you sense?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At first he was being tortured with cold,” she said, her eyes closing, her face showing pain. “Then I experienced madness. Loss of control and logic. Lust for a woman he was with, bloodlust, and then physical pain. He tries to shut me out but his mind is in disarray.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael looked down at Spock. He was aware of her in some ways, aware of his surroundings, but it was like he was hiding. Hiding from her, from his mother, from himself, even. Despite the peaceful look on his face there was a kind of rigidity to his body he normally wouldn’t have. How long could he take this kind of mental and physical stress? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sarek is somewhere in warm weather,” Amanda continued. “There’s sand around him. It makes him think of home. Will you notify the Sebennians?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll tell Sitta. She’s our liaison.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s being led somewhere. I know he’s struggling to regain control of his mind but I don’t think he’ll make it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Amanda’s face registered discomfort. She touched her head, making a sound as though in pain, before she crumbled to the floor. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mother?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Dr. Boyce rushed over and helped Michael get her to her feet, but she couldn’t keep balance. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mother, what’s wrong?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Amanda didn’t answer. A scream ripped from her as she gripped her head and thrashed about on the biobed they placed her on. As soon as she was on the bed the panel above gave a complete readout of her vitals. Her blood pressure was dangerously high, rapid pulse, and her brain activity was all over the place. Michael knew what she was seeing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This is a bond,” she said, pointing at a line of information. “Sarek is attacking her through the remnants of their marriage bond. Do you have a psionic field disruptor?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Dr. Boyce rushed to grab what was needed and placed it on the three points of her face that a Vulcan would touch to create a link between their minds. He allowed Michael to set the parameters and almost immediately Amanda began to settle. Dr. Boyce gave Amanda a hypospray. Michael watched her vitals return to safe levels. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He just tried to kill her,” Michael said. “We need to find Sarek and bring him aboard. The longer he’s on Sebenn the worse--”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Phil!” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Una entered sickbay with Linn leaning heavily on her. His hair was matted to his face with sweat, and his spotting was so faint they’d almost disappeared. Michael didn’t know much about Sebennian physiology, but she figured that couldn’t be anything good. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He said he was weak, had difficulty breathing, and chest pain,” Una explained. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Get him on this bed,” Dr. Boyce said. He helped Linn onto a bed and looked at the readouts. “I’m not familiar with this species but as I suspected, this is heart failure.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He gave Linn a hypospray as Una looked at the readouts. “But he’s a perfectly healthy sixty year old man. Middle-aged for a Sebennian, just like us.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m going to need to do a full workup, but judging by these readouts there’s a chemical imbalance taxing his cardiopulmonary systems. If you ladies could please take seats in the waiting area, my staff and I need to monitor our patients.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael urged Una out when she looked ready to resist. Once in the waiting area, she heaved a sigh and sat down. They could still see into sickbay. Spock, Amanda, and Linn were all unconscious. A nurse ran tests on Amanda while Dr. Boyce and a small team worked to pull Linn out of danger. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s been complaining of feeling tired and dizzy since this morning.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And Unnat?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s fine. A yeoman is sitting with him. What happened to Amanda?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael explained the situation and Una shook her head. “This fucking planet. I both love it and hate it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sarek’s been here for months and he was fine,” said Michael. “Spock almost immediately started to experience strange symptoms.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The meat eating, expressing emotion.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah. There’s something that’s changed and my gut says it’s intentional.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Una looked away from Linn. “You think someone’s intentionally hurting them?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“With Linn I’m not sure, but I have suspicions about Sarek and Spock. The only problem is I don’t have a clue where to look.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Start with the source,” Una said. “Go back to Sebenn and examine everything and everyone Spock encountered and interacted with.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I will, but not before I know Amanda and Linn will be ok.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Una squeezed Michael’s hand. “Thank you for being concerned. I have a feeling we have a while to wait. Coffee?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, thank you. I like it creamy and sweet.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They spent hours sitting in the waiting area. Una worked on reviewing reports while Michael tried to study Spock’s medical records from six years ago compared to now. Sitta beamed up to the ship to work with Dr. Boyce on Linn’s case. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It can’t be easy for you,” Michael said, watching Sitta care for Linn. “Trust me when I say I know how much you love him.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve thought him dead for six years, Michael.  I thought I’d moved on, but as soon as I saw him…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t imagine going through that. Then getting a second chance with the one you love? It all came crashing in on you. Plus, you have a son!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Una smiled even as tears welled in her eyes. “I’m selfish. I want to take them back to Earth. I could take a teaching position at the academy, and he could see what a world of peace and equality looks like. He can meet my mother and brother.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That sounds wonderful. How is it selfish?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Deep sadness darkened Una’s blue eyes. “Because, he’s needed on Sebenn. And he’s in this arranged marriage that’s been hyped to bridge peace between men and women. It’s symbolic, not loving.  The most I can hope for is on-world visiting rights with Unnat. That’s only if Sebenn joins the Federation. If they don’t, they close their doors to offworlders.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Una looked in to see Sitta speaking with Dr. Boyce. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sitta isn’t in love with him. He’s not in love with her. It’s archaic to force this union. Michael...Linn and I slept together last night. I know it was wrong—”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, it wasn’t wrong.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It complicates things.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael nodded her agreement. But there was no judgement. “There’s not a regulation I wouldn’t violate to be with Spock, so you won’t find condemnation from me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sitta entered the waiting area and took a seat. “I have a theory as to what’s going on. It’s called Eveddeh-Jav. The Union of the Many. The Connected Body. Sebennians are physically connected through a link in our physiology. We’re even connected to our planet. It’s why we’ve always been in harmony with it. To harm our world is to harm ourselves.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, you’re saying Linn can’t leave Sebenn?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Unfortunately. We’ve tried it before. Within days of being separated from our people, our planet, we get sick and die. It throws our chemistry out of balance to the point it’s fatal. We survive through synergy. We can’t even survive isolated from other people on our planet for more than a few months. There has to be at least ten people together to remain safe.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Unnat? Will he be okay?” Una asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll have to examine him but I think his human blood will offer him some protection.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Will Linn recover once he’s home?” Michael asked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I believe so. He’ll need treatment to heal from the heart attack, but he’ll make a full recovery.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Michael was about to leave them to speak in private when Dr. Boyce interrupted.  “Have you guys seen Spock?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They all got to their feet and looked into sickbay.  Spock’s bed was empty, and Michael could barely sense him through their bond. He was shutting her out, but he didn’t have the discipline in his current state  to completely separate himself from her. Michael turned to Una. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s going back to Sebenn.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I must go back to Seddah-Seh to prepare for Linn’s arrival,” Sitta said, standing suddenly while looking at a device wrapped around her wrist. She tapped in a few commands.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll see you to the transporter room,” Una offered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You stay with Linn. You’ll bring him comfort,” said Sitta, before tapping a button and vanishing in a flash of light. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’ve got to get transporters like those,” Una said, before heading in to sit beside Linn. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <strike>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </strike>
</p>
<p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Cheating on his mother with another woman? Trying to kill her through the tattered remnants of their marriage bond? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was time for Sarek to die. The women of the Matriarchy movement didn’t seem to be having any luck in killing the monster he’d once called father, so it was time to offer them a helping hand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>From the auxiliary controls near engineering, Spock opened the sensor network. He suspected that were he not out for blood, were he not hunting, he wouldn’t possess the focus needed for this task, but focused he was. Spock tried everything he knew in order to pierce the field that clouded the Enterprise’s sensors, but nothing really worked. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Trying to breach the sensor network?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Spock spun away from the console, his entire body tense, to find Sitta standing behind him, her arms crossed. How had she managed to sneak up on him while his senses were amplified by whatever was happening to him?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Without asking what he was doing, or why, Sitta approached the console, but her hand hovered over the screen. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll stream you to the planet with a device to help you see through the sensor net, but you have to do something for me when you get there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <strike>
    <br/>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </strike>
</p>
<p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Nightfall came and Sarek laid down at the water's edge. His clothes no longer reeked, nor did his body, but his leg throbbed. He felt cold and lay there shivering as his mind began to clear. He’d bathed.  Killed an animal and eaten it raw. Amanda reached out to him but he’d become enraged and tried to kill her. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Take me, death. End this. End me</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Death didn’t seem to want to cooperate. Instead, life was determined to make him suffer. At some point the fever began to pass. He thought someone had knelt beside him. Touched him. When dawn brightened the sky and brought the welcome heat of day, Sarek got back to his feet. The leg was strong. The pain was gone, and so was his conscience. His focus, however, was sharp. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A large black bag sat on the ground. Sarek carefully opened it and saw that it unrolled. Inside were new clothes in his preferred color: black. He slipped into them, wondering what the material was made of. There were weapons, too. Energy weapons. A scanner gave him a clear readout for miles around. A medical kit. A wrist device that would allow him to use Sebennian stream technology. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The wrist unit gleamed in the morning sun. He tapped it and it projected a holographic display interface. He pulled up streaming coordinates. This could take him directly to the Enterprise. He could get help. He located the ship but when he tried to initialize a stream it flashed red. It wouldn’t beam him to the ship. It wouldn’t beam him off the planet. Instead, it flashed a map of the immediate area and showed him places he was authorized to stream to, which included a compound with a detailed map of the interior about 11 kilometers southwest of his position. Directly ahead.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The wrist unit blinked to life again, as soon as he shut down the display, with a three word message: kill them all. He felt a sting from the neck of the uniform he wore, and immediately any self control he thought he’d gained vanished. He no longer desired help. He no longer looked back on his actions of late with remorse. All he wanted now was to kill. The wrist unit literally pointed him in the right direction and, without any hesitation, Sarek set off on his mission to kill everyone in sight. But not before he discovered who their true prime was.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <strike>
    <br/>
    <br/>
    <br/>
  </strike>
</p>
<p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>It had been so long since Spock stood under the light of a natural sun and allowed it to shine down on him that, even in his current state of mind, he had to stand for a moment to relish it. The spot he’d streamed to was awash in sunlight, and he tilted his head back to let it warm his face. It was also hot, but in a way that he’d never experienced before. Vulcan was arid, whereas Sebenn was a world of water. He could feel it in the air, making the heat stick to his skin in a way that was decidedly unpleasant. He liked heat, but he liked it dry. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Ocean waves lapped at the sandy beach that he could see stretched for miles in either direction. The horizon over the ocean was a rich blue while the sky above was much brighter, and completely free of clouds. He stood before the wreckage of Sarek’s ship. Dead bodies, all Sebennian women, littered the beach like the gory detritus of a child’s toy box from a nightmare. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The ship that sat mangled before him gave off a variety of scents that Spock breathed in. Blood, both Vulcan and Sebennian, came to his nose. It should’ve been disheartening, alarming even, but it only served to excite him. He entered the ship, careful to scan for signs of life, but there were none. It took some careful work but Spock maneuvered his way inside where he used the scanning equipment Sitta provided him with to search the ship.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The bodies inside had lain in the heat, just like those outside, all the day before, last night, and all day today. They were bloated and stinking, but Spock focused his attention on the medbay. He looked at the history of the equipment, reading over what instruments had been used for what treatments. It told an interesting story. A new tongue had to be regenerated for one woman. And then, Vulcan biology clear, a leg wound had been treated. Spock took a moment to download the ship's sensor data. The ship had been deliberately crashed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Spock…</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He whipped around, certain Michael had beamed down and now stood behind him, witness to the carnage his father had wrought on his kidnappers, but she wasn’t there. She was trying to reach them through their bond. He shut her out, promptly, afraid if he let her in he’d give in to whatever she asked of him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eager to be free of the stinking, stifling confines of the transport, and on the hunt, Spock hurried to climb out, but paused at the treeline to scan for life. A little over 12 kilometers from his current position, Spock picked up on his father. He was still, perhaps resting, or perhaps watching his targets. Spock looked back on the wreckage, and the bodies, and allowed himself to feel a moment of pride for his father’s work. Not bad for an old man. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But as he moved forward, Spock fully intended not to let Sarek outdo him. He’d lived in his father’s shadow his entire life. It was his time to shine at something, even if that something was a bloodbath. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. The Fires in the Forest</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In which Spock and Sarek are rescued and learn more about who orchestrated Sarek's kidnapping.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I have to admit I'm posting rough drafts of what I've written. I just want to get this story finished since I'm struggling with depression and also working on an original novel.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Michael was ready to flip a table. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock had not only made his way off ship without clearance from either Dr. Boyce or Captain Pike, he’d somehow done it without using the ship’s transporter system. He was also shutting her out of their bond. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She reviewed ships internal security footage by tracking Spock’s communicator, and watched as he made his way to Deflector Control, undoubtedly hoping he could boost the signal to search for Sarek. If he was in his right mind he’d know that wasn’t possible. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>To her surprise, she watched as Sitta streamed not from sickbay to Sebenn, as she was supposed to, but to Spock’s location. Michael doubted it was a coincidence that the camera feed in the room malfunctioned at that moment. Neither of them exited the room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Burnham to Captain Pike.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pike here. Number One just notified me that Spock snuck out of sickbay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He did, yes. He had help from Sitta.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Our Sebennian liaison?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes sir. I need clearance to return to the planet. I need a word with her.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Permission granted. Tread carefully, Commander. I don’t need another diplomatic disaster where this planet is concerned.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Understood.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Una was still in sickbay, preparing Linn for transport, while Unnat stood beside her, holding her hand. He waved at Michael, who waved back, and offered him a smile, though she didn’t feel it in the slightest. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Commander, a word.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can it wait? We’re about to…” Una’s voice trailed off when she saw Michael’s face. She bent over to give Unnat a kiss on the forehead. “Sit with Daddy for me? Mommy will be right back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The little boy nodded and took his father’s hand after Una lifted him up to sit on the bed beside him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is...everything...all right?” Linn asked. He sounded weak.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything is gonna be fine,” Una assured him. “Please, Linn, don’t worry yourself over anything. We’ll be back on Sebenn in no time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Una followed Michael across the room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sitta helped Spock beam down to Sebenn,” she said, and explained everything she knew. “What is she doing?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know, but we’re going to find out. Let’s get Linn planetside, and then we’re gonna have a little talk with our liaison.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took everything in Michael not to split off from Una, Linn, and Unnat and allow Dr. Boyce to send a team to help transport while she went directly to Sitta, but they were heading there anyway. After getting Linn dressed for the cold, Una used a wrist unit given to her by Sitta and they streamed to the surface, just outside of the treeline at Seddah-Seh. Sitta was already there with a grav-cot to get Linn into the clinic for treatment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Una immediately gripped Michael by the arm, looked her in the eye, and shook her head. “Spock isn’t in immediate danger. Linn is.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Una picked Unnat up and started off after Sitta, who monitored Linn as they headed into the village. Men and women went about daily life, cooking, trading in the market, and making sure the children went to the appropriate learning trees rather than sneaking off to play in the snow. The thought of having a life here, or anywhere on Sebenn, with Spock, not only made her heart ache, but it made her wish she was with him now. She reached out to him, but Spock was just beyond her reach. She could sense him, sense their bond, but couldn’t make contact. She didn’t have the decades of experience that Amanda had with such matters.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As though summoned by the mere thought of her, Amanda’s voice called out to her. She turned to find her adopted mother jogging her way, wearing full Sebennian winter gear. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mother, what--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought it was a dream,” she said, taking Michael by the arm and splitting her off from Sitta’s group. The doctor looked back at Amanda’s presence with a slight frown but otherwise kept moving. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Aren’t you as cool as the snow in the sky?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Michael thought, watching her vanish into the clinic with Linn’s grav-cot. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now I know, it’s not.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you talking about?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael allowed Amanda to hurry her to the quarters she and Spock shared while on Sebenn, where she pulled out a medical tricorder and scanned the room. After a few moments she stopped at a heating vent. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was right, look.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There were traces of a compound. Something had been pumped into the room. Michael immediately remembered Spock commenting on it their first night back, when they’d arrived in the cabin.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Do you smell something?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Michael sniffed the air and shook her head. “No, but my sense of smell isn’t as keen as yours.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It smells like the inoculation spray Sitta gave to a patient the last time I was here, just before I left the planet.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I have no idea. Want to ask her about it?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Spock gave a slight bow of his head. “It is of no matter.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“So, what would you like for dinner?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you think she dosed him with something?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not just Spock, but Sarek, too. His compound worked, Michael, but something counteracted it. To become as savage as he has simply from being on Sebenn? No, they’re being controlled.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We can’t confront her until she’s finished treating Linn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, we can’t confront her at all. Not yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why? Do you think she’ll hurt them if we do?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just don’t think it’ll accomplish anything. We need to find our men and bring them home, Michael. We need to get them off this goddamned planet and then leave these people to sort out their own problems.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t until now that Michael took a moment to look closely at Amanda. Her usually ruddy skin was pale. The flesh under her eyes had darkened to an unhealthy gray. Her face was pinched, belying pain. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You should get back to the ship and rest, Mother.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve rested enough. I’ve sat on the sidelines enough. I may be in the process of divorcing Sarek, but I’ll be damned if I let anything happen to either him or my son.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then what do you propose?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amanda went to the entrance to gaze out at the mountains that were now at least partially visible through the mist that always shrouded them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We find a way to get into her files and see what the hell she’s been doing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Perhaps I can help with that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A man emerged from the side of the entrance, where he’d apparently been eavesdropping. A little on the short side, with anchor gray hair and spotting and slender build. Michael had seen him with Kerry the last time they were here.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re Maal, Ensign Kerry’s love,” Michael said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Philip has a new rank?” Maal asked, with a look of pride. “How is he?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s well. He’s chomping at the bit to get back to see you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why didn’t he?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s complicated,” Amanda said, breaking in. “I’m the wife of Ambassador Sarek. If you can help us, I guarantee you will get to speak to Ensign Kerry again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I promised Kerry I’d help him get in touch with you, and I will,” said Michael. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course I’ll help you. You may not remember but I’m one of the computer technicians here. I help keep the systems in Seddah-Seh running. I don’t have the deep level of access you likely need, but I can at least get you to a control interface without arousing too much suspicion.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael motioned for them to get going. “Lead the way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Maal took them through the village. The trees did an admirable job of shielding them from the elements outside, but the wind still blew snow along the ground. The further inside they went, however, the more insulated it was from the outside. It grew noticeably warmer, aided by fire pits that provided heat and light. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The branches had been carved away to provide a higher ceiling, and the population thinned out. Less civilians made homes in this area, making it a business district. The trees here housed offices, the computer core, and power distribution nodes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m impressed by how this culture evolved to be completely at one with their trees,” Amanda said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re linked to their planet,” Michael began, and explained what Sitta told them in sickbay. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I suppose this means there’ll never be any Sebennian officers in Starfleet if they join the Federation.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Here we are,” Maal said, stepping into the base of an old tree with a massive trunk that had four floors carved out of it. A tall cylindrical computer core glowed with green light. It was balanced by arms drilled into the wall. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How do these trees remain healthy being hollowed out?” Michael asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Our connection keeps the trees healthy, just as they provide for us,” said Maal. “We’re careful not to carve out too much. This room takes up only 25% of the tree core.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sat at a terminal and keyed in an access code. After that, he motioned for Michael to take a seat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you really think you can break into Sitta’s files?” Amanda asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maal, I’m not willing to do this under your access code. It’ll look like you hacked Sitta’s database.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Finding out what’s happened to the Ambassador might help us put an end to this war. If I have to take a fall for that, so be it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael took a deep breath, placed her tricorder on the console, and set about breaking into Sitta’s files. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Sarek</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The compound was much bigger than Sarek expected. There were also more women inside than he anticipated. Fifty-four to be exact. How was he expected to kill over fifty women on his own? </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Perhaps he wasn’t. Perhaps this was the master Prime’s plan to kill him. But why? What purpose would that serve? His captors had plenty of opportunity to kill him since taking him from the capital, so why send him here with orders to kill when he was vastly outnumbered? If he could figure that out, he could possibly extricate himself from this situation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Who was he attempting to fool? He didn’t want out of this situation. His pulse ticked up as he thought of the women inside. They had deadly projectile weapons that the defense net couldn’t disable. He’d been given an energy weapon. He could kill these women in near silence. He could set the weapon on wide dispersion and take out an entire room in one shot. With evening approaching, surely the women would be settling down for the night. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But killing them in their sleep? Where was the fun in that? It would drastically increase his chances for survival, sure, but he wouldn’t see the fear in their eyes before they met their end at his hand. The idea of it was almost enough to make him harden. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille...she’d deceived him. She’d used him. Knowing so should’ve made him despise her. It should’ve put her at the top of his hit list, but it didn’t. It just made him want her more. She could replace Amanda. He could take her back to Vulcan where they’d live among the free spirits. He was just about to proceed forward when he saw movement at the treeline. He adjusted his sensor goggles and spotted the one person he least expected to see. At least at the moment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His son was dressed in identical gear to him, carrying the same weapons and equipment. Was he here with the same mission? Or was he here to locate and kill his father? He moved with admirable stealth around the treeline that surrounded the compound. These foolish women prided themselves on being intellectually superior to men but they’d lacked the common sense to make a significant clearing around their stronghold. There was barely three meters of cleared ground between the building and the tropical forest surrounding it. The towering trees above obscured the building from view overhead, but any ship with sensors would pick it up regardless.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Idiots.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock clearly knew he was there. He made no effort to mask his approach and settled down, within striking distance, beside him. The glasses over his eyes were clear, leaving his face easily visible, as he gazed at his father.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My son.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am not your son.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The last thing Sarek expected to feel in this moment was regret. He tried to tamp it down but his control mechanisms were disabled by whatever drug was in his system. He’d been dosed, he knew it, but he didn’t care. Apparently his son had been, as well. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Have you come to stop me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve come to aid you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Under what terms? You once swore to never speak to me again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock bowed his head. “I speak because circumstances require it. As to my terms, that is my concern, not yours. I have formulated an attack strategy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek’s wrist unit vibrated ever so slightly, completely silent. He called up the information on his goggles rather than in air, to avoid the light catching the attention of anyone inside. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Divide and conquer? You always were fond of Suvik’s teachings.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Julius Caesar, as well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek studied the plans. It showed a layout of the building, and, thanks to their goggles, they were able to see the location of each combatant inside. They were grouped into one room at the moment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You want to attack now, wipe them out, and be done with it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Again, Spock offered a bow of his head. “You undoubtedly wish to pick them off, cause terror and relish it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I do. Have you never given into bloodlust, Spock? It is...exquisite.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is pointless,” Spock countered. “It is an unnecessary risk and increases the chance of failure for the mission.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my, aren’t you ever so logical?” Sarek sneered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do as you wish, Sarek. You always have.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hello, gentlemen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They’d gotten distracted. Sloppy. Allowed themselves to lose track of their surroundings. They both looked up and saw that Gille, Tilla, and six other women stood before them, weapons drawn. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve been expecting you,” Gille said, smirking down at them. “Your weapons have been disabled, as have your personal shields. You can either come quietly, or die here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock casually brought his weapon up, aimed right at Gille, and without hesitation, pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It would seem our benefactor has, as the humans put it, ‘played’ us,” Sarek said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Indeed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock holstered his weapon, put his hands up, and got to his feet. Sarek followed suit. “This is an interesting turn of events,” he said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“In what way?” asked Gille, walking about ten feet behind him with the other women. Out of striking distance. For now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was given this equipment by someone with the orders to kill you all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, I sent you that message,” she replied. “I needed to get you to come to us since you were so determined to sit among the trees, sulking.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And Spock? You sent him, too?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille hesitated. “I did not. His purpose remains unclear. Only that I’m to bring him in with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The women led Sarek and Spock into the building. It was an old structure, made completely of stone and wood, with ornate carvings in the walls of nature, trees chief among them. Several rooms they passed had tapestries hanging on the walls depicting the exploits of great Sebennian women from times of old. They almost always depicted some form of women conquering men who had the audacity to hope for equality. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The largest room in the building, an auditorium, was packed with every woman their sensors had picked up earlier. There was a floor to act as the stage at the bottom of a complete circle of seating that surrounded it. The room was designed to hold hundreds on rows of stone benches, and the extra empty space made the room seem more cavernous to Sarek. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Every woman here is armed,” Gille said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What is the purpose of this?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Prime wishes to see you fight to the death.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The crowd roared in approval. She motioned at cameras that flitted about the room, circling Spock and Sarek. Tille took their weapons, leaving only their knives, and went to take a seat among the other women. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And if we refuse?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille winked at him. “We are the Prime of every Matriarchy cell on Sebenn. This gathering to watch the males who’ve interfered in our culture end one another. Your battle will be witnessed by every one of our people. We will humble you arrogant men and inspire generations to never give in to our traitorous queen’s foolish attempt to give you unworthy men power over any female.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stepped back, taking a seat next to Tille while the other women began cheering. Cameras projected screens in a halo around the auditorium, showing other crowds of women, in the hundreds at each location, screaming for Spock and Sarek’s blood. They wanted the men they hated so much to tear one another apart. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fight!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek made no move on Spock, who remained still beside him, holding his knife up to look at the gleaming edge in the golden light that spilled from the recesses of the high ceiling. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fight, boy,” Tille said, glaring at Spock, “or I will kill your father.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If anyone is going to kill Sarek, it will be me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It didn’t come as a surprise to Sarek when Spock swung his knife around in a deadly arc that almost slit his throat. He dodged back, his reflexes not what they used to be, but sufficient nonetheless. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t really expect he’d manage to end Sarek so quickly, or easily. His father took up a stance, facing him, as they began to circle one another amongst the women’s cheers. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you so mad from this planet you didn’t understand that this is why I’m here? To kill you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Perhaps,” Sarek said, “but I am not surprised.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Less talking! Fight!” Gille demanded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They took a couple of half-hearted swipes at one another, moved around, gauging the other’s footwork. It had been six years since Spock had sparred with Sarek. He’d learned a few things since then. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The last time we fought,” Sarek said, “was right here on Sebenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When you accused me of violating Michael.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bloodlust. It burned in his belly, his chest, made his heart thud against his side and made his senses sharpen. He was going to kill this man. He was going to watch the life drain from him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You destroyed my marriage, and for that, you will die.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock was done circling. He was ready to strike. The crowd of women around them, both present and those on the screens, began cheering in a way that radiated hate rather than jubilance. They chanted for blood. Demanded death. Spock didn’t care about what they wanted. He just wanted a catharsis for all his father had done to him and Michael. The years together they’d lost and would never get back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Blood poured from both men as they circled one another, though Spock began to suspect his father was holding back. Sarek missed openings Spock realized he’d given too late, and took blows he could’ve dodged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you doing? Fight!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We must give our captors a show,” Sarek said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We owe them nothing!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We owe ourselves freedom,” Sarek said. “I have no issue with fighting you, my son, but I do have issue being used by these bitches for their entertainment. Let us kill them first, and then we can kill one another.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They were close to the crowd. Much closer than Spock had realized. Now he knew Sarek had maneuvered him toward the women, who were so caught up in the fight they hadn’t noticed the risk. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re armed. We’re not.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are they?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock looked from his father to the women. Their weapons were gone. Several flashes of light showed that someone was streaming their weapons away while they were caught up in the spectacle. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you doing?” Gille demanded. “Fight or I’ll--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She reached for her sidearm only to find it missing. Tille did likewise. Then the other women. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re not soldiers,” Sarek said to Spock. “They’re just women who kill by planting bombs, poisoning, shooting, or stabbing their victims. They terrorize in secret.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock turned to the women, his thoughts going back to how women of their ilk had raided Seddah-Seh six years ago, killing so many innocent men, women, and children, without a care to the lives they destroyed. His eyes went to the only two weapons remaining. They sat on the floor at Gille’s feet, momentarily forgotten, and Spock finally understood what was happening. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Run, Sarek.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But this is our chance--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Run!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock bolted for the center aisle and raced headlong upward, taking the steps two at a time, swatting away the women who tried to block him. Sarek, he could hear, sprinted along behind him, along with dozens of women scrambling after them. They reached the heavy wooden doors to the room but Spock didn’t bother to try to shut them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I fail to see the logic in running, my son.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am not your son! Just shut up and run, Sarek!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They continued sprinting, heading back through the same corridors they’d used coming in. Once outside, Spock continued his mad dash, with Sarek close behind. But it wasn’t enough. The ground seemed to heave beneath Spock’s feet, and a wall of heat and energy shoved him forward as the building behind them exploded. He felt his body catapult through the air like a ragdoll. He landed hard, wind knocked from his lungs, and rolled. He looked up to see Sarek twist in the air and land, if not a little clumsily, in a crouch.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Show off,” Spock muttered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek rushed to his side and helped him sit up. He looked back at the building, which was now gone, replaced with a burning crater. The trees around them also burned, spreading through the forest at an alarming rate. They burned like tinder for an inferno. Lying on the ground a few feet away, was Gille. Several bodies of women who’d pursued them lay dead, engulfed in flames. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille moaned in agony, and Sarek went over to her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is that her?” Spock asked. “The woman mother sensed you were unfaithful with?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your mother and I are divorcing, so I was not unfaithful. But yes, this is the woman I was...intimate with.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock expected rage to overcome him. That he could use it to wipe out both of them for slighting his mother, but it didn’t. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I sense my control returning,” Sarek said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As do I,” Spock agreed. “Fascinating.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Either we possess superior control over our minds after all, or something else was introduced into our bodies without our consent.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Judging by your recent behavior I’m going to say it was something we were given.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek looked ready to object, but changed his mind and shrugged. “Yes, well…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock? Are you alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock’s ears perked up at the sound of the voice calling for him. “Mother?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amanda came tumbling through the trees, with Michael, Una, and Dirre close behind. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Where are you going?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“To get some answers,” Michael said, marching through the village. To hell with everything else. She was going to confront Sitta. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Think about this, Michael. You know the kind of power Sitta has. She’s the queen’s regent. Whatever she’s doing to Sarek and Spock could cost her—”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t care, and neither should you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They nearly ran face first into Una, who stood guard at the clinic entrance. Dirre stood beside her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael, we need to talk, but not here,” Una said. “Dirre says he has news, but I won’t allow you to endanger Linn while Sitta’s in the middle of his procedure.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She took Michael by the arm and led her, Amanda, and Maal toward the village tree line where Dirre’s shuttle was parked. Una remembered it well, how many phase cannons were attached to it, making it look prickly, like a porcupine. Even with six years of negotiations into ending the civil war on their world, he had yet to disarm it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know where Spock and Sarek are,” Dirre said, “and I’m willing to take you to them, but we must hurry, before it’s too late. We’ll have to travel by air, maximum speed, to within a hundred kilometers of their location before streaming in if we want to be on time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why not stream in now?” Amanda asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’ll alert the wrong person.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They climbed into Dirre’s transport and immediately took off. They flew through heavy storm clouds that dumped snow on the land beneath them, visibility at zero, until they emerged above them, into blinding sun. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What the hell is going on?” Michael demanded. “What’s Sitta doing to Spock?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not just Sitta, but me as well,” Dirre said. “I just hope we’re not too late.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For what, Dirre?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s called Operation Patriot,” he said. “A plot to win a decisive victory against the Matriarchy. In the interest of not having to repeat myself several times, we need to get to Spock and Sarek without Sitta knowing I’m aiding you. After that I’ll explain everything.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Despite Michael, Una, and Amanda’s objections, Dirre refused to speak further on the matter. Instead, he concentrated on prepping the small med bay at the back of the ship, which only worried Michael further.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Spock, please</span>
  </em>
  <span>…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Why wouldn’t he answer her? She could sense him but only vaguely, like a ghost at the corners of her vision. Rage had turned to fear. Now that fear had melted into anger, but it wasn’t nearly as intense as it had been moments ago. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re almost there,” Dirre said. He set the ship to autopilot before turning to them. “We’ll stream in, the ship will continue on course.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why here?” Una asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I still have access to this part of the security grid. It won’t alert Sitta that we’ve streamed in here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The women stood. Everything shifted. One moment they were standing in the transport, the next they were in a tropical forest. The air was hot and intensely humid. Feet away a column of acrid smoke arose into the air, though the wind shifted and blew it toward them, making Michael’s eyes and lungs burn. Still, she pressed on, following Dirre toward the smoke. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It didn’t take long before they found the source of the smoke. A crater was in the ground, and burning rubble was engulfed in flames. Spock sat watching Sarek attend to a woman with green hair and spotting. Her back was a mass of burnt flesh and she moaned pitifully. Sarek initiated a meld, his face contorted with her pain, before she fell asleep. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This temple was ancient,” Dirre said. “An old symbol of matriarchal oppression. One of many. She did it. She actually did it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We don’t have time to talk,” Una said between coughing fits. “We need to get them out of here. The fire is spreading.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael ran to Spock’s side and helped him to his feet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are angry with me,” he said, looking into her eyes as his own face registered pain. He was burned, as well, and stood on one foot, unable to put weight on the other. Blood cascaded down the side of his face from a deep gash over his right eye. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re goddamn right I’m angry, but we don’t have time for that. Come on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dirre scooped the woman up from the ground, carrying her face down so as not to aggravate her wounds, while Michael put Spock’s arm around her and tried to help him balance before they streamed back to Dirre’s transport. She helped Spock settle into one of the two available biobeds. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Broken ankle, several lacerations, some minor damage from smoke inhalation,” Michael said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Lie flat on the bed,” Dirre directed. “It will automatically set to work.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As soon as Spock laid down a field blinked into place. The same happened when Dirre laid the woman down, face first. A field blinked on, she was sedated, and beams of light began work healing her burns. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now that we’re all together, I’ll take us somewhere safe to talk,” Dirre said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dirre of House Lir,” a voice said over an intercom. Michael recognized it as General Sillu, the officer in charge   of the Royal Army. “Queen Marre summons you to the palace. You are to report at once.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dirre closes his eyes and lets out a long sigh of resignation. He nods once. “I am on my way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dirre, what is going on?” Una asks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything will be explained at the palace. There is no point in running, and my plan was to confess, after all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael took a seat beside Spock. She didn’t know Dirre well, but Una did, and she stopped demanding answers of him in favor of sitting with Amanda. Spock laid under the healing field, watching his parents, who sat on opposite sides of the shuttle, looking everywhere but at each other. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That will never be us,” Spock says. His voice is tinny from behind the field. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, Michael agrees, it will not.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Her name is Gille,” Dirre says, coming back to check on the green haired woman. “Sitta’s top lieutenant.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sitta tried to kill me,” Spock says. His voice is controlled, but Michael can feel his anger through their bond. “You are in league with her, which means you did, too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I admit, I did,” Dirre said. “Given that the fate of my people being at stake, I must also admit I would change nothing I have done up to this point. I am glad you and your father survived, but I will not apologize for trying to save my people.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your people?” Sarek says, standing to his full height, which is almost enough to bump his head along the top of the shuttle. “You had me kidnapped, where I was tortured, my mind raped of control, and you say it’s justified for your people? Do you know what I did while I was under the influence of your drugs? I raped. I tortured. I murdered!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything the women of this world have been doing to men since we evolved from mindless primates!” Dirre countered. “They revel in our oppression, our misery! You’ve never been subjected to anything like that by the women of your world, so yes, Sarek, I would do everything again!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek lunges at Dirre but Amanda steps between them. Sarek immediately halts. His hand, which was reaching for Dirre’s throat, stills before dropping to his side. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We will not solve this matter now,” Amanda says. “So let us return to the palace and find out what Dirre and Sitta’s plans truly are.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael relaxes when Sarek settles down, but as she looks at him, at his slumped shoulders and broken expression, she can’t stop the tears that begin streaming down her face. For all he’s done, she still loves him. For all he’s suffered on this world, she pities him. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Two To Beam Up</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>And now the conclusion...</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Queen Marre’s rage was terrible. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As soon as they landed they were greeted by General Sillu, who cuffed Dirre and Gille, and ordered Michael and the others to follow her inside. Michael expected to be led to court, but they were taken deep inside the palace  to the queen’s private chambers. Oppa was nowhere to be seen and Michael was relieved he wouldn’t have to witness his mother’s rage, or what was coming next. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Look! Look at this!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>One entire wall was a screen that showed fires raging in several locations, not just the tropical forest they’d left. Old temples around the planet had been reported as exploding simultaneously. Temples that had been listed as empty at the time of their destruction, though they’d been full. News media reported it was suspected to be an act of terror by Equilibrium. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitta stood across from the screen, at stiff attention, and Dirre was planted beside her. A door to the far room opened and Captain Pike entered. He was unarmed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Captain--” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He cut Spock off with a simple nod of his head. He didn’t look angry as much as he looked concerned. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Captain Pike, thank you for attending,” Marre said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is my honor to meet you in person, Your Majesty. I am sorry it must be under such difficult circumstances.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As am I, Captain,” Marre said, but her eyes are trained on Sitta and Dirre. “I must know, Sitta. What have you and Dirre done?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We have cut off the heads of the qurra,” Sitta said, though Michael’s universal translator replaced the word with hydra. “I...I am the founder of the Matriarchy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Marre visibly paled and Michael felt her own stomach swoop in shock and horror. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Prime?” Gille said, looking at Sitta in horror. “You...you did this to us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For the first time since meeting her, Michael could see Gille’s youth shine through. She looked  young, small, and so completely helpless under the weight of Sitta’s revelation. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You wanted me dead?” Gille asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wanted all of you dead,” Sitta said, though she can’t bring herself to look Gille in the eye. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sitta should not bear the burden of--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut up, Dirre,” Sitta said. “You only did as I instructed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“--of this alone,” Dirre continued, unfazed. “I am the one who approached her with the idea of recruiting every woman on Sebenn who would be willing to commit acts of terror to undermine peace efforts. When these women were rooted out the most...enthusiastic...of them, who were willing to personally commit atrocities in the same of the matriarchy, were made into officers, leaders within the organization. Then we gathered all the leaders at the old temples to watch Sarek and Spock fight to the death. When they were gathered, we destroyed those temples, with the women inside. We were willing to kill Sarek and Spock to achieve this, I’m ashamed to say.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Those who are left,” Sitta said, “are followers. Very few of them will be willing to try to resurrect the Matriarchy after they learn thousands of their leaders were slaughtered in one fell swoop.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You fools,” Sarek said, shaking his head. “You think you’ve demoralized the women who remain? You haven’t. All you’ve done is martyr the women you killed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You believe the women left will rally around what’s happened?” Marre asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek nods, as does Pike, though the captain remains silent. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Marre goes to a chair and sits down, falling heavily into the seat as Sitta and Dirre look at one another with worry for the first time. Silence hangs in the air as footage of over twenty temples around the planet are shown burning. Fires rage out of control while fire suppression drones attempt to put them out. Workers, men and women alike, in protective suits attempt to raze large swaths of the forest around the fires, creating a barrier, while spraying down the unharmed trees with flame retardants. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“These fires will bring harm to our people. Physical, emotional, spiritual harm,” Marre said. “And for what? So you could make our conflicts worse? For the first time since being crowned I honestly have no idea what to do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Lean on your people,” Captain Pike said. “Look to those you trust most to help guide you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is those I trust most that have </span>
  <em>
    <span>betrayed</span>
  </em>
  <span> me,” she said, looking at Sitta and Dirre with heartbreak so eloquent Michael finds herself choking back tears of empathy. Spock’s larger hand covers hers, while Amanda rubs her back in comfort.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sister--” Sitta said, but Marre shakes her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sister? You’ve murdered thousands of your own people, done great harm to our world, and you think you get to call me sister?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Marra stands, her face filled with anger, strides over to Sitta and strikes her not once, but twice, before falling back, breathless. Sitta doesn’t lift a finger in self defense, though her eyes remain downcast when she speaks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why, Sitta? What excuse can you offer to justify this atrocity?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why, Your Majesty?” she said, her eyes watering from the sheer force of the blows. “I lost everything in Hirra’s attack on Sedda-Seh. Nebbe was the reason I gave up my old-fashioned anti-male views. Nebbe was the reason I became a  better woman. She came in there and took him. She nearly destroyed our family’s Wellspring with fire. People like her had to be sent a message, ma’am. They had to be shown that the old ways will die or they will pay for it in blood.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And that is where you’re wrong,” Marre said. “Revenge doesn’t bring peace of mind, Sitta, and change must come through growth, not shows of force. Violence will only beget violence. What you and Dirre have done is murdered women who all have loved ones who will grieve them. What do you think those loved ones will do when they learn the truth of this? They’re already blaming Equilibrium. That alone is reason enough to fuel this war just as we were beginning to make real change. In just minutes you two have destroyed six years of progress! You’ve created a mess I can’t clean up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But you can,” General Silla said. “With a sacrificial lamb.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Marre looks at her general, who is adorned in full dress regalia. Her shining armor, her helmet tucked under her arm, and her cloak hanging to the back of her knees. She looks regal, stands tall and proud, but her eyes betray misery.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sacrificial lamb?” Dirre asks. “That would be me and--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fool,” General Sillu said, shaking her head. “It can’t be either of you. Sitta is to marry Linn in a ceremony that has been built up among the public for years as a symbol of men and women coming together in equality. Dirre is the figurehead of the men’s equality movement. If either of you go down for this, blood will run our rivers red. We will enter a dark age that will last for centuries.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But the remaining women in the Matriarchy know Sitta’s their Prime,” Sarek said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, actually, they don’t,” Sitta said, shaking her head. “I only revealed my identity to my top lieutenants. Gille, Tilla, and about ten others. They all died in the explosions, except for Gille.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you’re confident none of them ever spoke to their people about you?” Captain Pike asks. “You’re certain none of those others survived?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s no way to be certain,” Sitta said. “Time will tell.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re proposing they get away with this?” Marre said, looking between Pike and Sillu in horror. “What sort of justice is that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You portray this one as the mastermind behind the attack,” General Sillu said, motioning to Gille.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No!” Gille said, shaking her head and looking at the queen as she drops to her knees. “Please, Your Majesty! Please!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You wanted the queen dead, Gille! You dreamed of seeing her publicly executed, and now you beg her for mercy?” Sitta asks, snorting in derision.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Scapegoat her?” Marre said, looking at Gille with deep pity on her face. “I can’t do that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You must, ma’am,” General Sillu said. “Someone must take the blame. Someone unknown to the people. It is the only way you’ll save the progress we’ve made. Sitta and Dirre represent too much to throw it away now. Everything we’ve worked for will be for naught if you lay blame, even rightfully so, at their feet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The room was completely silent except for Gille’s quiet cries. She laid on the floor at the queen’s feet, her face hidden in her hands. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sometimes noble people must do terrible things for the greater good,” Sillu said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“General Sillu...put Gille in a cell,” Queen Marre said. “She is to be completely isolated. No one is to visit her but me. Not even you may see her without me being present.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Understood, ma’am.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Also, General, I want Sitta and Dirre locked in guest rooms in the palace. You are to disable all communications terminals in the rooms. Make no mistake, Sitta, Dirre, you’re under arrest, but the public cannot know this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I won’t make any attempts to escape,” Dirre said. Sitta vows the same. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As for the Federation representatives, I ask you to remain planet side until I’ve decided what to do. You may remain here at the palace, or return to Sedda-Seh if you wish. I’ll try to come to a swift conclusion. Ambassador Sarek, please write a full debriefing on everything you’ve been through. I will need it to inform my decisions going forward. Please, be brutally honest, leave nothing out. You will suffer no judgment. You are a victim of my sister, after all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek bows his head and then the queen dismisses everyone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t envy her,” Pike said, as they exit the room. “No matter what she decides, she will lose much, and carry the weight of the truth to her last breath.”</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Spock</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>From his point of view beneath her, Michael looked majestic. Her head hung back, every inch of skin glistened with sweat, her breasts bounced as she rode him. Her eyes closed as her lips parted to allow a breathy moan to escape. She reached climax and he reveled in the feel of her clenching him tightly, her body rippling around him and squeezing him until he came. The rush of it was hard to contain but he kept quiet, lest his mother hear from her own room next to theirs. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>After they caught their breath Michael brought a bottle of dark blue plimine wine she replicated and two glasses to the bed. They sipped the chilled beverage and listened to the howling wind outside. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you want to happen?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I want Sebenn to know peace,” Spock said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sitta and Dirre have committed a monstrous act. They should face justice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Agreed. But what if justice means a complete reversal of the progress made?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is it not wrong to scapegoat Gille?” Michael asked. “Blame her for everything while the real perpetrators walk free?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock stroked her hair, pushing a braid from her face. “She was, as humans say, ‘neck deep’ in a conspiracy to kill the queen and further the oppression and virtual enslavement of every man on Sebenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael nodded. “Yeah. I guess nobody is innocent here. Except Marre. It must be terrible to be queen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I do not envy her crown.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He held Michael until she drifted to sleep and then went to stand under the hot pulse of the sonic shower unit that had been installed in their room. Once clean, Spock dressed and headed into the night since sleep evaded him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The village was largely quiet except for a few who went about night shift duties. Some men and women went for jogs on the tracks. Spock joined them, jogging until sweat ran down his back under his coat. He watched his breath frost in the air as his pulse climbed. Miles passed beneath his feet until he circled back home. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was an unpleasant end to his jog to find Sarek standing at a public food replicator. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tea, chamomile, hot.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As soon as he had his cup, Sarek turned to Spock and bowed his head. “Spock, my s...Good evening.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good evening?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The deep inhale of breath and a long sigh was the only thing to betray Sarek’s weariness. Spock stood only feet from him, uncertain of what to allow himself to feel. He’d had a pleasant night with his wife, a good jog on a beautiful winter night, and now he tried to decide if he’d let those pleasures be ruined by his long-standing hatred of his father, or just let it go. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Walk away</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spock turned to do just that but Sarek’s voice halted him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, if you wanted to finish our confrontation, kill me in ritual combat, I would not object. I would not even resist.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you did not resist, it would not be combat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have ruined our relationship. I want to acknowledge that my hubris alone is responsible. Neither you nor Michael were ever at fault. I am sorry, my...I am sorry. I do not ask for, or expect forgiveness. Only to take responsibility for the pain I’ve caused you throughout your life, and the time I’ve robbed you with your wife.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Every emotion Spock has ever allowed himself to feel comes to the forefront of his heart. Anger, hurt, sadness, and even love. Part of him wants to forgive, but fear and uncertainty hinder him. What good would forgiveness be if his father backslid into old habits? And how soon would he backslide into hate if Sarek said even one wrong word? He gave the only answer he could.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am not ready.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek bows his head once. Spock was grateful he didn’t push. That was a step in the right direction. </span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Sarek </b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Goodnight, my son.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was ever so slight a moment of hesitation in Spock’s step, a stiffening of his back, but he didn't stop. He didn’t spin to face him and snarl ‘I am not your son.’ That was more than Sarek ever hoped for in any distant future. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Perhaps, when he was old and dying, his son would stand beside his bed and look at him with at least an absence of pure hatred. Perhaps the children his union with Michael produced will actually know his name, and the sound of his voice. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sarek wandered to the edge of the village where he found his personal transport had been delivered and parked. He sensed her presence and saw her sitting on a bench at the edge of the tree village. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even after 36 years of marriage, she took his breath away. She stood when he drew near. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Husb—Sarek.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ms. Grayson. To what do I owe the pleasure?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is it a pleasure? To see me? Only three days ago you tried to kill me through the remnants of our bond.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was not myself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Guilt and shame flushed his face a deep shade of green. He swallowed, remembered his actions, and wished he could take them back. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know. That is why I have forgiven you for it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He knew she spoke the truth. The unbonding process never finished. The divorce was still ongoing. Left to nature, it would reassert itself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m cold, Sarek,” she said, with the air of a woman exasperated she would even have to tell him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Without hesitation he offered her his insulated mug of tea, and then moved toward his ship. It opened at his approach. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Computer, adjust temperature to human comfort.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Acknowledged.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Computer, adjust temperature to standard Vulcan/human compromise,” Amanda countered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The door sealed shut behind her, and she faced Sarek in the dimly lit room. She took time to dump the replicated tea before she went to the kitchen and took a tin of real chamomile out. She prepared a kettle, and Sarek watched her every graceful move.  He ached for her in ways he didn’t think he could. His desire for her wasn’t sexual. It was purely the need of her love, her forgiveness, her presence in the absence of resentment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I read your debrief to the queen,” Amanda said. “You were forced to do horrible things.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still, I did them. I enjoyed much of it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You enjoyed those acts of terror as much as a rape victim would enjoy an involuntary orgasm,” she said, turning back to him. “ Which is not at all. It happened, but it was forced on you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You seem determined to forgive me of everything. Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Why am I questioning it?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because I am your bondmate,” she said. “I felt what was underneath it all. Horror. Disgust. Self loathing. Guilt. Fear. Everything your higher brain couldn’t let you experience, I experienced it. I never abandoned you, Sarek. You just weren’t always capable of being aware of my presence.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wanted to run away from her. He wanted to shrink away, hide in the shadows like the loathsome creature he was. He was unworthy of her gaze. He was unworthy of anything she tried to offer, especially her love and forgiveness. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think your guilt is punishment enough...husband.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For the first time in years, while not under the influence of a foreign substance, Sarek began to weep. It was hard, bitter. It was the kind of weeping that brought him to his knees. Everything he’d suffered came crashing down. He hated everyone who’d used him, drugged him and violated him. Most of all he hated himself for not being strong enough to maintain control. He hated himself for being weak.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were never weak, my love,” Amanda said, holding him close and allowing his tears to soak into her tunic, and flow between her bosom. She stroked his hair and held him until the weeping abated. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come, husband. I will attend,” she said, helping him to his feet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Like she had for their son so many nights as a child, she tucked Sarek into bed. Once he was under the blankets she climbed into the bed behind him and held him close. She stroked his hair and listened to the ghostly echoes of his sobs. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You and I can salvage our marriage,” she said. “But only on these conditions: You must seek counseling for what you’ve suffered. You must leave this godforsaken planet behind, let someone else sort out their troubles, and heal yourself. Then we can work on reestablishing our bond. And after that, we will both need to find some way to reconcile with Spock and Michael. They’re our children. We should not live our lives without them. Agreed?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t need to say yes for her to feel his promise through their vow. The howl of the wind was muted by the ship’s hull, but the storm that kicked up outside still managed to gently rock the ship, and them to sleep along with it. </span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <b>Michael</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The morning of the fourth day dawned with an almighty snow storm that seemed determined to bury Sedda-Seh in snow. Michael awoke and met Spock’s amorous needs. After fighting him off from a second round she indulged in a sonic shower, and chose something flowery for her body scent. As she went about preparing breakfast, Michael listened to the news. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The screen showed craters in several forests, no longer smoking, but surrounded by burned trees. Reports of ill health, especially among the elderly, the very young, and those with immune deficiencies, in the regions where the fires happened, had risen sharply. Queen Marre had meant it literally when she said damage to the planet would cause pain among the people. Some of those most vulnerable could even die, according to the reports.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The reports also showed wild speculation about who was behind the attacks. Clearly biased news agencies blamed Equilibrium, and the interviews were almost always angry women hurling slander against men, and warning of the dangers of allowing men too much freedom. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This world would be so wonderful, if not for this misandrist bias,” Michael said, putting her spoon down after finishing her oatmeal and toast. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They will recover from this, if Queen Marre is able to lead them through it,” Spock said. “I believe she will.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How?” Michael asks. “How in the world is she supposed to handle this. Sitta and Dirre may have had the right intentions, but their execution was an act of horror. A true atrocity. They used Sarek, and you, and were going to kill you both to further their agenda--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Michael,” Spock said, reaching out to take her hand. “What could have happened didn’t. I am alive. Sarek is alive. We will leave this world and put all of this behind us. Starfleet has already decided to rescind their offer to negotiate peace, and any possible chance of them joining the Federation has been shelved since the queen withdrew application to the Federation. Let us concentrate on what can be, as soon as we leave this planet.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But Michael’s anger could not be so easily assuaged. Sitta, someone she’d once trusted and considered a friend, had allowed her foster father to endure violations of both his mind and body, and had pitted him and his son against one another just to distract the Matriarchy from being aware of the danger they were in by entering the temples. They’d promised a fight to the death between two offworld men. A symbolic abolishment of both men and the universal stage to stoke the fires of misandry and xenophobia. She’d planned on Spock and Sarek’s deaths. She mourned the loss of her soul mate, but had been perfectly willing to rob Michael of hers. And, in just a few moments, they’d undone all the progress their people had made toward finding a common ground and making change.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wars will rage for centuries to come, long after we’re both dead,” Spock said. “But they will find peace, Michael. Humans and Vulcans alike did. Sebennians will as well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They received a summons from Queen Marre to come to the palace in an hour. Spock and Michael had their belongings beamed to the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Enterprise</span>
  </em>
  <span> before they headed out to meet up with Captain Pike and the others. The storm couldn’t manage to get snow through the thick foliage of the trees that towered over them so walking was easy. The villagers were out in full, with children rushing off to school and parents off to work. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I like this planet,” Captain Pike said, looking out at the white wall of blowing snow just outside the tree line. “I bet it’s gorgeous when you can actually see everything.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He and Michael shared a laugh. Una, Linn, and Unnat joined them, along with Amanda and Sarek, who walked arm in arm. They didn’t speak, but they looked content. Sarek kept his eyes downcast, but Amanda searched her son’s face for an objection. Spock sighed and bowed his head in acceptance. He’d been a lot less quick to attack his father after reading the full report of what he’d suffered while captive by Sitta and Dirre’s people. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The view from the palace windows was every bit as snowy as from Sedda-Seh. General Sillu led them to the court hall, which was packed full. News drones floated high above the hall, live reporting everything that was about to happen. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The queen wishes to speak with the offworlders,” one of the queen’s servants informed General Sillu.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They found the queen sitting in an office, watching the storm outside. She looked exhausted, as though she hadn’t slept in days. When she turned to them, it was clear that her duties had taken a toll on her. She motioned for them to find seats. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your Majesty,” Linn said, bowing deeply. “Did you consider my request?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I did, Linn,” she said, taking a seat. “I want the rest of you to know that I hold no ill-will toward any of you. Ambassador Sarek, there are no apologies I can offer that will make up for what you’ve suffered at my sister and Dirre’s hands.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nevertheless, apologies accepted,” Sarek said. “I know you truly regret what has happened, and I hold no ill-will toward you or the Sebennian people.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your grace is more than we deserve,” she said. “Thank you. As to your request, Linn, Una, I grant it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Linn and Una exchange relieved looks. Linn kissed Una’s hand while Unnat watched from his mother’s place on his mother’s hip. He never strayed far from her, as though scared she would vanish after having found her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“At least one good thing can come of this,” the queen said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m lost as to what you’re talking about,” Captain Pike said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m resigning my commission,” Una said. “I’m sorry, Chris, but I want to raise my son. Possibly have more children. Linn and I will be married soon. We’re going to permanently settle at Sedda-Seh. Unless you plan to fight my resignation.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Captain Pike looked between Una, Linn, and their son, and then shook his head with a sad smile. “How could I? You want to be with your family. I could never stand in the way of that. I’m gonna miss the hell out of you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As will I,” Spock said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not one for group hugs, but what the hell?” Una said, standing and pulling Spock and Captain Pike into a hug.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Queen Marre stood to her feet. “And now for the unpleasant part of today’s proceedings. Please take your seats in the guests galley. I’ll be out momentarily.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The court was filled with a low rumble when Michael took a seat in the guest chairs. Spock sat to her right, and Sarek sat beside him, though he remained stiff-backed and made no efforts to speak to his father. Michael looked over the massive chamber, watched the news drones hover over the room, snapping photos and video, while voices rumbled in the room as speculation ran rampant.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All rise for Her Majesty, Marre, Queen of Sebenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They arose, waiting until the queen sat before resuming their seats. Queen Marre remained quiet, looking out over her people with weary eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Those gathered here today are the council. You represent the people of Sebenn, both female and male alike. I rule, but you bring a voice to those in your districts to my ear. For the past six years we have strove to bring equality to both genders on this planet. We were making real progress, despite the efforts of a terrorist group calling itself the Matriarchy doing all they could to undermine our goals. We saw through their misandrist propaganda and began making headway in equality between women and men. Then, four days ago, tragedy struck.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A screen showed the attack on the Matriarchy. The burning temples, the forests going up in flames. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Over 3000 women, all leaders in the Matriarchy movement, were killed in a coordinated attack that happened on every continent of our planet. But not just 3000 terrorists were killed that day. We Sebennians live in harmony with our planet because of synergy. We are one with our planet. Hurting Sebenn is to hurt ourselves.    An additional 1207 people have died as a direct result of these attacks. Many were elderly, some sickly, and some were babies as young as a year old. They weren’t able to survive this atrocity. This act of pure evil.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The rumbling in the room grew in volume as people, mostly women, began shouting accusations at the men among them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s one thing to disagree with the Matriarchy, but this?” one woman shouted. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We didn’t do this!” a man shouted back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Queen Marre banged her gavel, and slowly restored order to the court. Dirre sat ashen and silent. It seemed he’d aged a decade in the past few days. Sitta also sat silent, looking sickened as the weight of her crimes came down on her. Everyone in attendance began to settle as Gille was led into the court. She was shackled and muzzled. Her face was a mask of pure misery.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“An extensive investigation led by General Sillu has revealed the culprit behind this act of terror. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Gille of House Nou. She is the founder and head of the Matriarchy. She, and her co-conspirators, orchestrated an attack designed to undo all of the progress we’ve made over the past six years. When the Matriarchy realized their lies and hate wouldn’t deter us from making true change, they decided to gather their leaders together on the promise of seeing two off-world men, Sarek and Spock, fight to the death. It was purely a symbolic sport to raise their spirits. They would see not only two men die, but two offworlders they saw as a threat to our old way of life.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gille was placed before the queen. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But sport was not Gille and her trusted lieutenant's true agenda. Their true plan was to take out the old temples, and their own people with it, and then blame it all on Equilibrium. This was supposed to martyr their people and spark a civil war. Turn us against each other and undo all of our progress. Their messages of hate weren’t being as well received as they’d hoped, but this would surely turn women and men against one another forever. Isn’t that right, Gille?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael expected Gille to object, but she didn’t. General Sillu took off the muzzle and Gille, as without color as the snow raging outside, nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Your Majesty. I and my people have done this terrible thing in a misguided attempt to destroy goodwill between men and women on our world.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have failed,” Queen Marre said. “Gille was too cowardly to die with her people, and, as far as we know, is the sole survivor of their plans. You see, ladies and gentlemen, this act of terror was committed by women, not men. It was </span>
  <em>
    <span>women</span>
  </em>
  <span> desperate to cling to the old ways, to oppress men, and keep us from making progress and joining the Federation, who did this. Muzzle her.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>General Sillu placed the muzzle back on Gille just as the room erupted, this time with women screaming loudest. They called for Gille’s head. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Execute her!” one woman shouted. Soon the chant was picked up by others, until many men and women alike were screaming for Gille’s blood. She stood before Marre, trembling, as the queen fought to bring order back to the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I forbid any further outbursts,” Queen Marre said. “Anyone who disobeys will be jailed for a year. Am I understood?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The crowd quieted, albeit reluctantly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Change comes through enlightenment. Utilizing the death penalty is not the behavior of an enlightened people. I hereby decree that from this day forth, no person shall face death at the hands of government. Gille’s crimes are terrible indeed, but she will not die for them. Gille, as punishment for your acts of sedition and murder, I hereby sentence you to life imprisonment. You will never know freedom again. Take her away.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A few councilmen and women were also led out, unable to control their tempers and disobeying the queen’s command for silence. Those remaining glared at Queen Marre in anger, though they did it silently. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“In other news, my dear, beloved sister, Sitta, will no longer be marrying Linn. He has found true love with an off-worlder, Commander Una of the Federation. They have a child together, and I could hardly claim to believe in equality if I force him into a loveless union. Linn and Una, you have my blessing. I wish you a long, happy union, and many brothers and sisters for sweet little Unnat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Than you, Your Majesty,” Linn said, standing and bowing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As for Sebenn, we have proven we are not ready to join the Federation. Recent events have highlighted just how far we have to go before we can join the United Federation of Planets on equal footing. We must solve our issues of gender inequality, and our xenophobia, before we can open ourselves up to the galactic community. From this day forth, Sebenn will be closed to offworlders, Una being the exception. She may leave once per year to visit with her family on her homeworld, and then return home to Sebenn. Court is adjourned until our scheduled meeting in seven days. Dismissed.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>...</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Una and Linn would marry in six months time, but none of her shipmates would see it. Not in person. They would have to content themselves with a vid stream of the ceremony. Michael hugged her goodbye before leaving her to say farewell to Spock and Captain Pike in private. Though she didn’t hear what Una said to Spock, she felt his sense of loss and sadness. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I must admit, I’m glad I’ll never have to return to this world,” Michael confessed. Spock slipped his hand in hers as he watched Sitta take her bags to a streamer. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As part of her secret punishment Sitta will never see Sedda-seh again,” Amanda said, approaching them. “Sarek and I were there when the queen meted out punishment. Both she and Dirre will ostensibly pursue careers doing research and making efforts to heal the damaged forests. She’ll be treating people sickened by the fires. It’s their imprisonment.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t understand why Gille confessed,” Michael said. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sarek suspects the queen threatened to imprison her family if she didn’t cooperate. Don’t feel too badly for her. She’s far from innocent. That isn’t the only reason for my visit. Sarek and I are flying home to Vulcan. He will sequester with the priests to try and deal with...what happened… I hope that if you decide to have traditional wedding ceremonies, we will be invited. Spock, I cannot put him away.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I understand,” he said, taking Michael’s hand. “We intend to have both human and Vulcan weddings one year from now. I would be honored for you to attend. Both of you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Amanda began blinking, holding back tears as she hugged her son. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spock, son, I can’t breathe.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Apologies,” he said, quickly letting her go. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He smiled at her before allowing her to kiss his cheek. She hugged Michael tightly before cupping her face. “My true daughter. I cannot wait to plan the weddings with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Same.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stepped back, her face ruddy from the cold, and smiled. “I love you both so much. I will contact you once we’re properly underway.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Michael took Spock’s hand in hers and looked back at the tree village. What a remarkable place. She hoped Una would be happy there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Commander Burnham! I’m so glad I caught you!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Maal came running toward them, a huge smile on his face. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, Spock, I completely forgot about him and Kerry. I’m such a bad friend.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Much has transpired of late,” Spock said, squeezing her hand. “Your lapse in memory is forgivable.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks like Una isn’t the only human granted access to Sebenn,” Maal said, coming to stop before them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maal, in everything that’s happened, I forgot to contact Kerry. Please, forgive me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I contacted him, with help from General Sillu,” he said. “She’s my sister-in-law, and has enough connections to get messages through. She got me an audience with the queen yesterday. She was very kind, and understanding, and has said it would be good for Una to have another human on our planet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m so happy for you two,” Michael said, pulling him in for a hug. “When does he arrive?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’ll take him a few days to get here,” Maal said, patting her back before releasing her. “I just wanted to let you know what’s going on. I wish you well. Safe travels, and long life.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Live long, and prosper,” Spock said. Maal tried to fix his fingers in the salute. He did a passable job.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gotta go. Kerry and I have been assigned new housing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He bounded back to the village and Michael took a moment longer to take everything in. She breathed deep of the fresh, frigid air, before turning to Spock. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m ready to beam up to the Enterprise. I’m ready to come home, and start our life together.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As am I, Wife.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He kissed her gently before pulling his communicator and flipping it open. They stood side by side and looked out at the white wall of a furious snowstorm. Michael had never felt so glad to beam to a ship. A ship she would now call home, with her husband. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Enterprise,” Spock said, in his deep, serene voice. “Two to beam up.”</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And so the story is finished! I think... I truly hope you enjoyed it &lt;3 Thank You for reading till the end. Thank you for every comment, and every kudo.</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ladies and gents, KerryLamb has posted an awesome new fic that takes place in the Mirrorverse. Y’all should read because it’s just amazing work.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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